Brain Damage From Botched Neurosurgery

The brain is an incredibly complex and fragile organ. It’s also the body’s control center, responsible for all bodily functions, thoughts, memories, and personality. All surgeries require a high level of skill, but few require the delicate handling, focus, and professional excellence of neurosurgery.

When a neurosurgeon makes a mistake, the results are devastating and often irreversible. Suffering the impacts of brain damage from a surgical error during neurosurgery is life-altering for the victim and often for their whole family.

Acceptable Risks Vs. Medical Malpractice In Neurosurgery

Surgeries have inherent risks, and neurosurgery is more dangerous than most; however, there is a difference between unavoidable adverse outcomes of neurosurgery and brain damage caused by a doctor’s medical error during the surgery or improper post-surgical monitoring. A brain injury from a medical mistake is entirely preventable when doctors follow proper protocols.

This requires treating a patient within the standard of care the medical community accepts as appropriate, including in the most delicate neurosurgery cases, where surgeons, anesthesiologists, and every member of the surgical team must have the highest level of skill and experience and take every possible precaution to prevent a patient’s life-altering injury or fatality.

What Types of Mistakes Occur During Neurosurgery In Arizona?

Failing to meet the standard of care required during brain surgery has egregiously adverse implications for the patient, including for their health, abilities, and finances. Tragically, surgical errors are not as uncommon as you might think, including in delicate neurosurgery cases. The following surgical mistakes sometimes occur and cause irreparable harm to the patient:

• Accidentally damaging a blood vessel
• Performing brain surgery on the wrong side of the brain
• Operating on the wrong patient
• Operating on the wrong area of the brain 
• Insufficiently monitoring a patient’s vital signs during surgery
• Anesthesia errors
• Failing to detect and mitigate brain swelling
• Failing to obtain informed consent
• Failing to obtain a complete patient history
• Performing an unauthorized or experimental procedure
• Failing to perform appropriate diagnostic tests before surgery
• Leaving a foreign object, such as gauze or a surgical tool, inside the brain
• Improper sterilization of surgical tools, resulting in an infection
• Improper post-operative monitoring

A medical research study investigating neurosurgery errors categorizes mistakes under the categories: technical, contamination, equipment failure, anesthesia errors, post-operative nursing mistakes, communication failures, and errors of judgment.

A well-publicized example of botched neurosurgery occurred in 2013, when 51-year-old Regina Turner of Missouri underwent brain surgery and the surgeon operated on the wrong side of her brain, leaving her with speech impairment, permanent disability, and the need for around-the-clock care.

Proving Liability For a Surgical Error During an Arizona Neurosurgery

Although no legal process can erase the harm caused by botched neurosurgery, an injured patient or the closest surviving family member of a fatally injured patient can seek financial accountability and a sense of justice through a medical malpractice claim against the liable party. A successful case must demonstrate the following:

• A patient/doctor relationship was in place when the malpractice occurred
• The doctor owed a duty of care to the patient, requiring the doctor to treat them within the medical community’s accepted care standards
• The doctor breached their duty of care through negligence
• The breach of duty directly caused the injury or adverse outcome
• The injury victim suffered damages from the injury

Damages are often extensive after botched neurosurgery, with significant physical, cognitive, and financial damages to the victim, or the surviving family members of a deceased victim whose death resulted from a surgical mistake.

Who Is Liable After a Botched Neurosurgery In Arizona?

After a serious medical malpractice injury like those associated with neurosurgical errors, the doctor’s medical malpractice insurance company and the hospital’s attorneys investigate the incident. Unfortunately, their goals do not align with the victim’s objective of recovering the compensation they deserve.

For this reason, hiring an experienced attorney puts a powerful ally on the injury victim’s side. An attorney for the victim or their family conducts an independent investigation. The first important aspect of the investigation determines who is liable for the resulting damages. Common liable parties in botched neurosurgery cases include the following:

• The surgeon, if they were an independent contractor with privileges at the hospital or facility
• The hospital if the surgeon was an employee
• Hospital administrators, if the error was caused by an administrative mistake, such as failure to obtain a complete patient history or misidentifying a patient
• The anesthesiologist
• A member of the surgical team
• The post-operative care team
• The manufacturer of a defective medical part or equipment

In some cases, multiple parties may share liability under Arizona’s pure comparative negligence law, ARS §12-2505.

Understanding the Extensive Damages In Neurosurgery Malpractice Claims In Arizona

Because the brain is crucial to all aspects of human life, the impact of a surgical error depends on the severity of the injury, the portion of the brain affected, and whether the patient requires a secondary surgery to address the original problem or mitigate damage from the error. Common damages cited in Arizona neurosurgery malpractice claims include the following:

• Reimbursement for past medical expenses
• Anticipated future medical costs
• Physical, speech, and occupational therapy costs
• Costs of adaptive or assistive equipment, home health assistance, or a long-term care facility
• Out-of-pocket expenses
• Lost earnings, future income loss, and reduced future earning capacity
• Compensation for pain and suffering
• Compensation for loss of enjoyment of life, diminished quality of life, and catastrophic injury

If the botched neurosurgery caused the patient’s death, their family can obtain additional compensation through a wrongful death claim, recovering the lost income and benefits of a family provider as well as funeral costs and compensation for the family’s grief and anguish.

How Can an Arizona Medical Malpractice Lawyer Help My Case?

Medical malpractice is a complex category of personal injury law, requiring access to respected medical experts, as well as investigative and negotiation skills. Contact the Phoenix medical malpractice attorneys at Knapp & Roberts to learn more about your legal rights and options for financial recovery after surgical malpractice during brain surgery results in significant harm.