Surgery Glitch

A Nurse in 2005 was working the night shift when she got severe abominable pain and started vomiting. After seeing her doctor she discovered that there was a surgical sponge stuck in her gut from surgery she had 4 years before.

Every year a estimated 4,000 cases arer reported wih surgical items being left in patient after surgery most sponges used to soak up blood, during long operations many are stuck in and occasionally are forgotten.

Ms. Savage (the nurse) sued after having it removed along with a part of her gut and she won 2.5 million, she is no longer able to work and barely leaves her house.

A way that has been used to prevent such issues have just been recounting everything u use in surgery but as always someone may miscount and a sponge will escape.

It is a step that would take 12 extra seconds but it is rarely ever done to recount at the end of the surgery. Sponges today now have a bar code, it is not required and most hospitals are cheap and do not want to spend the extra money for it, but this does happen and when it does it caun have drastic measures.
 But bar codes are not always the answer and its not always sponges that get stuck in a person scissors are too.

It is all about how smart the doctors are to remember to make sure that it doesn't happen as often as it does.




http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/24/when-surgeons-leave-objects-behind/