It all starts this Tuesday, May 18, 2021, in a medical clinic in the city of Freistadt, Austria. An 82-year-old patient suffers from several pathologies: it is necessary to proceed with the amputation of his left leg.
Shortly before the operation, the surgeon asks the patient to confirm the leg to be amputated. Problem: the patient does not articulate correctly, the surgeon does not understand him and… marks the right leg with an arrow instead of the left leg. And what had to happen happened: the octogenarian had his bad leg amputated.
The error was not noticed until two days later
It was not until two days later, this Thursday, May 20, 2021, that the error was noticed, when the dressings were changed, while the patient was in the presence of his two daughters.
“We are deeply shocked that on Tuesday, May 18, despite quality assurance standards, an 82-year-old man’s bad leg (…) has been amputated“said the clinic in a statement. The director of the clinic, Norbert Fritsch, speaks of a “tragic mistake“occurring due to”series of unfortunate circumstances“and presented”a public apology“.
The patient was offered psychological support to overcome this tragedy: the amputation of his sick leg (the left, therefore) is planned “shortly” according to the clinic – which specifies that the man has not yet given his consent to this intervention… The Freistadt clinic, for its part, has filed a complaint against the doctor responsible for this medical error.
Source : The Guardian
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