Man sues after swab left in chest

A MAN in his 70s who had a triple heart bypass operation, but had to return to the operating table after a surgical swab was left in his chest cavity, is suing the cardio-vascular surgeon who operated on him.

Malcolm Kilmister, 71, of Germiston initially instated his R1.2 million claim against both the specialist surgeon and the Glynnwood Hospital, but the hospital successfully approached the court to order Kilmister to drop his claim against it as there was nothing to implicate it in any wrongdoing.

Kilmister was admitted to hospital on July 23, 2012, and had a triple bypass with a pacemaker inserted.

At the end of the procedure, nursing staff who assisted in theatre noticed that a swab was unaccounted for and brought this to the specialist’s attention. It is alleged that he failed to do anything at the time to establish its wherabouts.

However during the post-op examination, Kilmister was told a swab had been detected in his chest, that an infection had set in, and it would have to be surgically removed.

Kilmister said he experienced severe pain and shock following the second operation, which according to him would not have been necessary had the specialist not forgotten the swab, or acted sooner when he was alerted by nursing staff.

Lawyers acting for the hospital said the nurses were not allowed to examine a patient to make a diagnoses. All they could do was refer their observations to a doctor, which they did. The specialist was the one in charge of the procedure, not the nurses, and so could not be responsible for the matter.

The judge found that the nurses did not have any further obligations towards Kilmister and granted him leave to amend his court papers within 20 days, removing the hospital as a defendant.