Surgical Errors Lead To Wrong Site Operation, Award for Family

New Mexico residents may be interested in hearing about a 15-year-old boy from another state who underwent brain surgery back in 2004. There was a lesion on one side of his brain that needed to be removed because it was thought to be part of the reason he was having seizures. Unfortunately, during the surgery, surgical errors occurred and led to permanent injuries for the young man.

Apparently, the surgeon and his surgical staff had failed to conduct a time out prior to the incision being made into the boy’s left brain, which turned out to be the wrong side. The surgeon did not even realize his error until he had actually removed parts of the boy’s brain. Upon realizing his error, the surgeon had the patient repositioned, and he operated on the other side of the brain without informing the patient’s family of the mistake.

Following the surgery, the surgeon informed the family that he had, indeed, begun on the wrong side of the brain. However, he asserted that no damage had occurred because he realized his mistake in time. A little over a year later, the boy needed an MRI for an unrelated reason and the results showed that an operation had been conducted on both sides of the brain.

The family filed a medical malpractice suit against the hospital and the surgeon. They ended up winning a multi-million dollar award for the mishandling of the surgery and the surgical errors that resulted in irreversible harm for the boy and pain and suffering for the family. New Mexico residents who find themselves in a similar situation may benefit from seeking legal assistance to explore any options that may be available in order to recoup financial damages following the negligence of a medical professional.

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