Wrong Surgery Performed On Woman As Team Watches
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On Aug. 26, Toni Braun was supposed to have a small pre-cancerous mass removed from her left breast.
However, when she awoke, she found a bandage covering a scar roughly 6 inches above the breast.
X-rays confirmed that during the procedure, a surgeon's scalpel came very close to the lead wires in Braun's pacemaker, according to the report.
"I can't comprehend why they (surgical team) would let him (surgeon) make the mistake and not speak up and say 'wait a minute, shouldn't that be the breast?'" Braun said.
Photos after the operation show faded black ink markings on Braun's skin where she was told to draw an arrow to indicate the location of the mass prior to surgery.
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"The nurse on the same-day surgery gave me a marker to mark the area," Braun said. "I did as I was instructed and I marked the area with the nurse standing there."
In Braun's operative report obtained by Local 6 News, the surgeon, Dr. Joseph Sinex explained the mistake: "There was noticeable black marking overlying this particular upper scar which was the erroneous one." Sinex said. "He also said "no one objected to this being the appropriate site."
Halifax Hospital's communications chief John Evans agreed to talk about the mistake that "no one in the operating room objected to."
WKMG reporter Holfeld said: "Somebody should have said wait a minute it Doc."
"Whoa, whoa, you've said if we were all in there," Evans said. "That's presupposing that we all know what it is. The operating staff wasn't with the doctor when the doctor talked to the patient. The OR staff wasn't with the doctor when he decided what site he was going to use."
Evans said the hospital launched an internal investigation and reported its findings to the state.
Confusion in the marking on Braun is one possible conclusion, Local 6 News reported.
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Holfeld asked: "Based on the hospital's internal investigation are you sure there were no post operation side effects, no indication of injury to her in anyway?"
"No, there was no damage that we're aware of and that the record reflects," Evans said.
Evans said the correct surgery was performed the following day without incident.
However, Braun is still angry because she had to go through the ordeal of a second surgery, Local 6 News reported.
Since returning to work for the city of Daytona, Braun has noticed a constant pain and numbness in her left arm.
Veteran malpractice attorney Kym Bouck said under Florida law, malpractice cases face two tests: real proof of negligence and a determination of whether it caused permanent injury.
"Quite clearly I think the first prong we can meet -- that there is negligent care here," Bouck said. "And the question is did the negligent care cause her permanent injury."
Although Braun is undergoing therapy, there is no proof of permanent injury linked to the surgery. She is still considering legal options.
Halifax Hospital has an outstanding record and has no pattern of mistakes in the operating room.
We offered Dr. Joseph Sinex an opportunity to respond, but he said he'll let the record speak for itself.