Northside Hospital Forsyth complaint alleges surgeon performed hysterectomy instead of planned myomectomy

The complaint alleges that a surgeon at Northside Hospital Forsyth performed a hysterectomy and bilateral salpingectomy on a patient. She had scheduled and planned a myomectomy instead. On the morning of the November 29, 2021 surgery, she signed a consent form that already described a hysterectomy. A nurse then changed a chart entry to describe the same procedure and told her at her bedside she was having one. The patient corrected the nurse, saying she was there only for a myomectomy, and the nurse called the surgeon to the bedside. The patient was not given a corrected consent form to sign. About 30 minutes later, the complaint alleges, the surgeon performed the wrong surgery anyway, removing her uterus and tubes instead of removing fibroids.

System: Northside Hospital, Inc.
Facility: Northside Hospital Forsyth
Providers involved: Dorigen Kasparek, M.D. / Kelly Winn Haney, R.N. / Mary Ellen Brill Murtha, R.N. / Leannah Michelle Thompson Langston, R.N. / Complete Women’s Healthcare, Limited Liability Company / Northside Hospital, Inc.
Pattern: Alleged performance of a hysterectomy and salpingectomy despite the patient’s planned myomectomy and bedside correction
Harm: Alleged loss of her uterus and fallopian tubes from an incorrect surgery, with physical injury and mental anguish

Overview

This page concerns a public complaint alleging that a surgeon performed a hysterectomy instead of a planned myomectomy.

Chronology

The complaint alleges as follows:

The patient saw the surgeon on October 5, 2021 for a pre-operative myomectomy appointment, and the surgeon ordered an abdominal myomectomy the next day.
Hospital records from her November 22, 2021 pre-operative visit and all insurance pre-authorizations reflected a planned myomectomy, not a hysterectomy or salpingectomy.
On November 24, 2021 the surgeon submitted a surgical services form listing the procedure as a hysterectomy and bilateral salpingectomy.
On the morning of November 29, 2021 the patient signed a consent form describing a hysterectomy and salpingectomy without realizing the error.
A nurse changed a chart entry from "removing fibroids" to "open hysterectomy and removing my tubes". She then told the patient at her bedside that she was having a hysterectomy.
The patient corrected the nurse and said she was there for a myomectomy. The nurse called the surgeon to the bedside, but no corrected consent form was signed.
About 30 minutes later the surgeon performed the hysterectomy and salpingectomy instead of the planned myomectomy. No note in either facility’s records documents the error afterward.

Alleged failures

The complaint alleges the following failures:

The surgeon presented an incorrect surgical order and consent form despite planning a myomectomy, and performed the wrong procedure.
She did not ensure a corrected, signed consent form was obtained before surgery began.
The nurse defendants and the surgical team did not reconcile the conflicting documentation or properly perform the safety timeout.
The nurse defendants did not stop the procedure when it was apparent the wrong surgery was underway. No defendant documented the error afterward.
The complaint pleads medical malpractice, vicarious liability under respondeat superior and ostensible agency, and loss of consortium, with expert affidavits under O.C.G.A. § 9-11-9.1.

Entities and tags

Northside Hospital ForsythNorthside Hospital, Inc.Complete Women’s HealthcareMyomectomyHysterectomyBilateral salpingectomyInformed consentForsyth CountySurgical errorDocumentation failuresObstetrics and gynecologySurgical NursingPerioperative care