A woman in Texas recently filed a lawsuit against a physician for failing to remove a surgical sponge from her abdomen during a November 2004 surgery. The woman wasn’t even aware that the sponge was still in her body until January 2010, when she sought medical attention for problems with her pelvis and abdomen. Doctors then discovered that the lower quadrant of her abdomen contained a lap sponge marker that had to be surgically removed.
The lawsuit accuses the doctor not only of the surgical error, but of performing the procedure without assistance, as well as neglecting to disclose that the treatment involved risks and hazards which would have “influenced a reasonable person in making a decision.” Additionally, the woman is suing the hospital for severing the doctor-patient relationship without notice when she was still in need of medical care.
Surgical errors can result in serious and sometimes fatal consequences. When foreign objects, like a surgical sponge, are left inside your body, infections and internal bleeding can occur that might not be identified until it’s too late. Meanwhile, cutting off care from a patient still in need of attention is a form of medical malpractice – which is more common than anyone realizes.
If you or one of your loved ones has suffered from a doctor’s negligence or wrongdoing in Texas, you deserve to be compensated. Please contact the experienced medical malpractice lawyers at Polewski & Associates today for a free consultation.
