SURGICAL ERROR LAWSUIT

The media is quick to illuminate cases of severe surgical error. For instance, the patient who had an incorrect limb amputated, a patient who didn’t need to have surgery at all, but did, the patient who went in for a relatively easy procedure and lost their life. While these scenarios can (and have) occurred, their prevalence is very, very, rare. However, an injury does not have to be catastrophic to be considered a surgical error. Below are the common types of surgical mistakes:

• Wrong site surgery – Occurs when a surgery is performed on the wrong body part. Prior to surgery, the medical team will identify and mark the part of the body that will be operated on. It is very important that you, as the patient, note the location and speak up if it is incorrect. Often the site will be marked in the pre-operative area, and again confirmed before anesthesia is given in the operating room. “Time-outs” or a complete halt by the medical team immediately before the surgery will also be performed to ensure patient identification, site confirmation, as well as the type of procedure. This implementation has drastically reduced errors since it’s inception.
• Anesthesia errors – One of the most common surgical errors that have the highest consequences. Difficulty with anesthesia can disrupt the oxygen flow to vital organs, including the brain. Common errors include giving too much anesthetic medication which can lead to oxygen deprivation to the brain and even death. Too little anesthesia may result in the patient waking up during surgery or feeling pain through the entire procedure. Additional complications may include allergic reaction, adverse effects following removal and increased infection rates.
• Retained foreign bodies – Perhaps the most common surgical mistake, a retained foreign body is noted as either an instrument, or assistive device that it left in the body when performing a surgery. Sponges are notoriously common. To prevent this, strict equipment counts are utilized to ensure that whatever is used during the surgery is also accounted for before the body is closed. Failure to obtain all items used in surgery before closure, will result in the need for a second surgery to remove the item.
• Nerve/Organ damage – Although rare, nerve damage can be caused by improper positioning of the patient on the operating table. It may also be caused by direct insult to the nerve itself if cut or pinched during the procedure. Organ damage may also be affected by direct contact with the affected organ. Additionally, medication (either anesthesia or preventative antibiotics) increases the risk of organ complications. The increasing use of robotics during procedures have made this complication much more common in the past years.
• Infection – The sterilization of equipment is of utmost importance when a surgery is performed. Not only should all equipment and tools be handled in a sterile manner but monitoring for after the procedure is complete is imperative to a good recovery as well.
• Bleeding – Regardless of the surgery being performed there is a risk for bleeding. However, errors occur when the surgeon or operating team is not prepared to handle unexpected bleeding in the operating room. Each patient should be blood typed prior to surgery, with reserves on standby should bleeding occur. In addition, the surgeon should be skilled in identifying and eliminating the causes of bleeding without risking circulation.
• Failure to diagnose – Surgeries that are performed with the goal of looking for disease processes is a crucial part of a physician’s job. These surgeries are called exploratory, and they are typically geared toward looking for a medical cause of a patient’s symptoms. Sometimes a completely unrelated surgery can lead to an alternative diagnosis as well, this is seen a lot with cancer diagnoses. Misdiagnosis can occur when a patient is told they have a disease process and they really don’t, or if the diagnosis is made too late, and the client is unable to receive treatment in a timely manner.

While this is not an all-inclusive list of errors that may occur during surgery, they are the most common errors that do occur. Nearly 4,000 surgical errors are reported in the United States each year. It is important to speak with an attorney right away if you believe an error has occurred, or if your surgeon tells you directly that an error occurred.

Remember, just because a surgery did not have a desired outcome, or complications arose, does not necessarily evidence medical negligence. If the surgeon acted in his or her capacity and delivered the care as a similarly trained professional would have then malpractice did not occur. The medical malpractice attorneys at Brown & Crouppen can help determine if you are eligible to receive compensation and build a strong case to support your medical malpractice claim to hold negligent medical professionals accountable for their actions.