Man’s horror as he woke from operation to hear doctor whisper ‘I’m terribly sorry, we made a mistake’
A MAN says he woke from hernia surgery to a doctor whispering: “I’m terribly sorry, we made a mistake.”
Tom Hadrys, 63, was only half conscious following the operation so put it down to a post-procedure blur.
But 105 minutes later he re-entered the operating theatre with medical staff in a panic.
It transpired the surgeon had accidentally left a medical specimen bag inside his stomach, as well as part of Tom’s bowel he had cut out.
Both were extracted successfully, but Tom is still plagued by related issues eight years later.
The incident, at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton in 2016, was classed as a ‘never event‘ – meaning it should never have happened.
Tom received a £15,000 settlement and an apology.
Professor Katie Urch, chief medical officer at University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Our surgery staff are committed to delivering the best, safest care to our patients, often in challenging situations.
“Surgeons do not work as individuals, they work collaboratively in teams.
“Those teams are highly skilled, doing complex surgery that is never without some risk.
“Their outcomes are continuously and closely monitored – both internally and externally – and whenever our care falls short of our high standards, we take immediate action to learn and improve.”
Tom was in bed on a recovery ward when the effects of his general anaesthetic started to wear off.
In a slight drowsy blur, he remembers being approached by a doctor.
“I was conscious, and I heard who must have been the surgeon whispering in my ear, ‘I’m terribly sorry but we’ve made a mistake’,” he told BBC Newsnight.
The retired engineer remained at the hospital while the surgeon, who was at the end of his shift, drove home.
It was only while he was in the car that he suddenly realised he had left a ‘Bert’ bag (used to remove parts of the body) inside Tom’s abdominal cavity – as well as a chunk of his bowel.
The doctor immediately returned to the hospital and whisked his patient off for further surgery.
A serious incident investigation was carried out and new, improved practices have been introduced for all surgeons.
Tom’s doctor is still working at the Trust.
I’m still suffering, there’s no doubt whatsoever that it’s affected me
Tom Hadrys
Tom says he lives with deep scars on his stomach and faces day-to-day difficulties related to the medical blunder.
“I’m still suffering, there’s no doubt whatsoever that it’s affected me,” he said.
“Because I’ve got a weak abdomen now, I can’t really lift anything heavy.”
According to the BBC, further concerns were repeatedly raised about the surgeon in question over the following years.
The General Medical Council (GMC) and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) deemed no further action was required.
The hospital was deemed as “requiring improvement” during its most recent inspection in February 2024.
The 12 most common NHS 'never events'
So-called “never events” are dangerous mistakes that “should not occur if healthcare providers have implemented safety recommendations”, according to the NHS.
Some 179 serious, preventable safety incidents occurred at hospitals from April to September 2023, the latest figures show.
Patients have had organs wrongly removed, had IUDs mistakenly inserted, and been scalded by hot water left at their bedsides.
Others have had vaginal swabs, drill bits and surgical needles left inside them.
The 12 most common mistakes last year were:
- Wrong site surgery (109 times)
- Retained foreign object post procedure (37 times)
- Wong implant/prosthesis (21 times)
- Misplace naso or oro gastric tubes (15 times)
- Administration of medication by the wrong route (nine times)
- Transfusion or transplantation of ABO-incompatible blood components or organs (seven times)
- Overdose of insulin due to abbreviations or incorrect device (four times)
- Unintentional connection of a patient requiring oxygen to an air flowmeter (three times)
- Overdose of methotrexate for non-cancer treatment (two times)
- Falls from poorly restricted windows (one time)
- Failure to install functional collapsible shower or curtain rails (one time)
- Scalding of patients (one time)