Surgical Mistakes

Surgical mistakes are not always obvious. Every surgery, even elective surgery, carries some kind of risk. A poor outcome from surgery can be the result of the normal risks or the underlying health condition that required the surgery. However, surgical mistakes are preventable errors and constitute medical malpractice. Surgical mistakes can cause fatal complications. Those who survive may experience extreme pain, disfigurement, extended recovery time, permanent disability and health problem, and much more.

Common Surgical Mistakes

Some common surgical mistakes include:

• Items left inside of patient
• Wrong site surgery
• Poor sanitation
• Use of dirty surgical instruments
• Anesthesia errors
• Nicking or cutting of tissue such as nerves, blood vessels, muscles, or organs, that should not have been involved in the procedure
• Inappropriate procedure due to failure to fully consider the patient’s medical history

Items Left Inside Patient

It is easier than it may seem to accidentally leave an item inside of a patient. That is why standard surgical procedure includes counting all items, including instruments, sponges, and pieces of gauze, before the surgery begins and then counting everything again before the patient is closed to make sure that every single item has been removed and accounted for.

Items left inside your body can cause fatal infections, severe pain, and require more surgery to remove the item or items. They can significantly extend the recovery time for patients who survive.

Wrong Site Surgery

Wrong site surgery is one of the horrors we all fear before surgery, but believe is unlikely to occur. Wrong site surgery includes:

• Removing the wrong limb or organ
• Surgery on the wrong side of the body
• Surgery on the wrong body part
• Surgery on the wrong patient (often resulting in two victims)

Causes of wrong site surgery include:

• Poor pre-surgery planning
• Inadequate site marking procedures
• X-rays read backwards
• Failure to communicate with the patient or patient’s loved ones before surgery
• Poor communication between surgical team members
• More than one surgeon involved in the surgery
• More than one procedure or surgical site in one surgical session

Denying Responsibility for Surgical Mistakes

Unfortunately, hospitals and surgeons often try to hide or deny their mistakes. They should work to correct their mistakes free of charge or pay for you to get the care your need to recover from their mistakes. When they do not, you can face huge expenses and may not be able to afford the care you need.

Compensation through a personal injury lawsuit may be the only way for you to pay for your medical care and to pay for the lost income and permanent disability that can be the result of surgical error.

When you face a legal problem, your best source for help is a capable attorney. You want to make sure the lawyer or law firm you hire is qualified to represent you with your particular problem. The law can be a very complicated matter. You don't have to go it alone. Find the right attorney for you! If you believe that your injury is the result of a surgical mistake, please contact us call us today at 1-877-LOSS RECOVER (567-7732)!