Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, reported that it removed a healthy kidney from a patient instead of the patient’s cancerous kidney.

The hospital did not notice that the mistake until a day after the surgery when a pathologist noticed the kidney taken from the patient was healthy.

Minnesota law requires hospitals to report adverse health events, including “wrong-site” surgeries (Minn. Stat. Section 144.7065, Subdivision 2 (1)). Last year, 24 wrong-site surgeries were reported to the Minnesota Department of Health in accordance with this law.

In the four-and-a-half years that state as been assembling data, "I don't know if we've ever had a wrong organ removal," said Diane Rydrych, assistant director of the state's division of health policy.

Ryrdrych says most hospitals have safety measures in place to prevent wrong-site surgery, including marking body parts to be operated on in advance of surgery and requiring a "time out" in the operating room to give surgical staff a chance to double check documentation and voice any concerns.

"I would say that these events are always preventable or almost always preventable" said Rydrych. (KARE 11 interview)

Certainly, this tragic loss of a healthy kidney could have been prevented. To contact a surgery malpractice lawyer at our law firm, please call toll-free at 1-888-377-8900, email Fred Pritzker, or submit the firm’s free case consultation form.

Posted March 2008.

Labels: Methodist Hospital, surgery malpractice, wrong kidney