License suspended for Florida doctor accused of fatally removing wrong organ from patient
The medical license from Thomas J. Shaknovskyosteopath who operated in Ascension Sacred Heart Hospital Emerald Coast Floridashe was suspended after being accused of taking a patient’s liver instead of a spleen, resulting in instant death. Emergency order was signed on September 24, 2024 Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo.
The incident took place on August 21, 2024, when William BryanA 70-year-old man living in Alabamawas admitted to the hospital. Bryan and his wife Beverly were visiting the Panhandle of Florida from Muscle Shoals, Alabamawhen he experienced abdominal pain. At the hospital, doctors found an abnormality in his spleen and recommended a laparoscopic splenectomy. New York Post.
Although Bryan initially refused the surgery, Shaknovsky He stuck to his recommendation for three days in a row and cited a drop in the patient’s hemoglobin level as the reason. Finally, Bryan agreed to undergo surgery on August 21 at 4 p.m. the operating room staff expressed concern about the doctor’s ability to perform this complex operation.
During surgery, Shaknovsky decided to convert the laparoscopic procedure to open surgery due to poor visibility caused by the distended colon and blood in Bryan’s abdomen. According to the suspension order Shaknovsky he did not document the colon as part of his decision to change surgery, he said New York Post.
When performing an operation, Shaknovsky He removed the liver instead of the spleen. He claimed he misidentified a blood vessel and used a surgical stapler, causing Bryan to bleed critically and go into cardiac arrest. Despite the resuscitation efforts of the staff Shaknovsky proceeded to dissect the abdomen and eventually removed a 4.6-pound liver. He incorrectly insisted it was the spleen FoxNews.
He operating room staff He was horrified and one team member felt sick when he saw the removed liver, a sight that did not match the description of a spleen. Shaknovskyhowever, he asked the staff to label the liver as “spleen” and send it for pathology. The doctor subsequently left the operating room several times, repeating that Bryan had died of a splenic artery aneurysm. New York Post.
He Florida Surgeon General He stated that the misidentification of the liver was not a trivial mistake. Although we switched to an open procedure to increase visibility, Shaknovsky He dissected the liver and severed the anatomical appendages that should have told him he was handling the wrong organ. Each severed ligament presented an opportunity to realize the mistake and yet the doctor did not mend his act, according to New York Post.
Except for this fatal incident Shaknovsky has a history of similar medical errors. In May 2023, the doctor removed part of the patient’s pancreas instead of the left adrenal gland. This incident caused permanent long-term damage to the patientwho luckily survived. The suspension order called for a complete curtailment of the doctor’s surgical procedures due to his negligent and irresponsible attitude. FoxNews.
William Bryan He was pronounced dead as a result of improper removal of the liver during a splenectomy. His family is preparing a lawsuit for negligence with the assistance of a law firm Zarzaur’s Lawsources said DailyMail.
In a public statement, Beverly Bryanthe patient’s widow, called her husband’s death a murder. Emergency order from Florida Department of Health defendant Shaknovsky multiple lies and falsifications in medical records and pressuring others to support his incorrect version of events FoxNews.
He Assumption Hospital of the Sacred Heart Emerald Coast he confirmed it Shaknovsky He is no longer part of their staff and they have banned him from all access to their facilities. Although the hospital is investigating Bryan’s death, it has declined to comment on specific cases, he said FoxNews.