November 3, 2014

Question

Medical Malpractice question.
In September 19th I went to my primary psysician due to an abdominal pain that I experienced, He referred me to do an abdominal ultrasound, I explained to him that I want to go to Europe for a month for vacation and I wanted to get clearance that everything is ok before I fly a 10 hour flight. I did the sonogram on a Thursday and he called me back on Sunday telling me The sonogram turned out that I have innumerable gall stones nothing to worry about and I m ok to fly without referring me to a surgeron or any further testing. Three days later I fly to europe for my vacation... After my sixth day in Greece I ended up in the emergency room with severe abdominal pain. They discovered that I had acute pancreatitis with acute cholocystitis.The doctors there decided to perform a surgery because my life was at risk. Instead of a laparoscopy the did an open surgery with a huge incision 10-11 in. I stayed in the hospital there for 11 days! If my primary psysician would have advised me different none of this would have happened! I m a 30 female that I have to live with a huge scar for the rest of my life for something that could have been prevented! my life was at risk in a foreign country far away from home!!! Its so unfair!

Answer

I agree with my colleagues. Whoever read your sonogram may have missed your inflamed pancreas (although it's hard to miss), OR, it didn't become inflamed until you were in Europe. Blood labs confirm acute pancreatitis (elevated lipids). You don't say if blood work was done here before you were given the all-clear. Still, from a legal perspective, its a difficult case because you had the open procedure done in Greece (instead of flying home), and based on what your PCP was told, he/she may have felt confident at the time is giving you the ok.


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