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Florida surgeon ‘devastated’ over death of patient after removing liver instead of spleen
(www.theguardian.com)
Thomas Shaknovsky botched the surgery of William Bryan, 70, who died on the operating table
According to Shaknovksy’s deposition, after removing Bryan’s liver, the surgeon instructed a nurse to label the organ as a “spleen” – and he also identified it as a spleen in Bryan’s postoperative notes. Shaknovsky later said he had been “mentally compromised” at the time of Bryan’s death, explaining that he was “devastated, demoralized, crying over his passing, felt that I failed him”.
Ope. A commenter has pointed out the surgeon has a record of ineptness. Please disregard this defense of him and continue with your torches & pitchforks.
~~I was ready to ridicule the guy, but before the mistake the patient had been bleeding profusely:~~
~~> “It was like a overflown sink that’s clogged up, and I am looking for a fork at the bottom, trying to feel and find the bleed, and I was not able to do so,” Shaknovsky said. He added: “After 20 minutes of struggling – desperately trying – to save his life, that’s when the wrong-site event took place.~~
~~Emphasis mine. The article says there's some debate on the size of the spleen when it was removed, too.~~
~~I didn't see anywhere that he attempted to "cover it up". It was mislabeled during the chaos. Afterwards he saw the mistake, has admitted to it, and is rightfully tortured by it. I hope the widow finds closure, but I doubt it'll come from a lawsuit.~~
huh, i wonder why?
because why would anybody look for justice in a court of law?
Hi, yes, please work on your reading comprehension - "closure" is not "justice". A payout and a lost license isn't going to bring her husband back.
obviously, but justice is often the closest thing to closure anyone who's lost a loved one can hope for. if she feels the doctor made mistakes which led to her husband's death, then why wouldn't she want to hold him accountable? your take is really 'she just needs to move on'?
I'm all for admitting I misread something, but if you read the article, the real bleeding started before the mistake. Surgeon was wrist-deep in blood, can't see what he has his hands on, and thinks the enlarged spleen is the liver. They've been wrestling with the bleeding for 20 minutes, so everyone is now in a panic. Then the mistake, no?
It's an awful situation, but folks around here are acting like the guy was inept or trying to avoid responsibility or something. Seems to me like this could happen to any decent surgeon with the right conditions.
He was definitely inept. There were reports of prior medical malpractice by him: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/doctor-indicted-liver-spleen-fatal-surgery-thomas-shaknovsky/
Boom. That's all I need to hear.
Alright, fuck this guy.
I figure, if he were a good surgeon & made a bad mistake, that's one thing.
The article also says the "spleen" he removed was far larger than any spleen anyone else had seen before. A trained surgeon should know that the organ they're sawing on is way to fucking big to be a spleen.