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Liability Discussion

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Subject
Nursing
School
Prince Georges Community College
Type
Homework
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[Name]
1/7/2021
Liability Discussion
This case in Massachusetts in 2006 involved a prestigious and seasoned surgeon who
removed a patient’s kidney instead of her gallbladder. The initial surgery was supposed to be a
gallbladder removal of an 84-year-old female patient via a laparoscopic tool. However, the error
happened when the surgeon misidentified the patient’s kidney, which was “unrecognizable,” as
her gallbladder, and then further misinterpreted test results so that he thought he had
confirmation of the organ’s location. Although the patient had a full recovery and eventually
didn’t even need her gallbladder to be removed at all, the surgeon was placed on probation
indefinitely (Riley, 2006).
To me, the Hippocratic oath means that doctors swear to uphold values of integrity,
honesty, and concern for their patients’ wellbeing. In this case, the doctor’s error came from a
chain of mistakes and misinterpretations, but he was honest in admitting his error and apologized
privately and publicly to the patient. In this sense, it is not very cut-and-dry if the surgeon has
violated the Hippocratic oath.
Based on my learnings, the difference between maleficence and negligence is primarily
based on intention. Maleficence occurs when someone like a surgeon commits an error on
purpose and knowingly does something wrong. On the other hand, negligence occurs by accident
(Ethics of International Engagement and Service-Learning, 2011). For instance, the surgeon in
the case was negligent but not maleficent, because although he committed a medical error when

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he removed the wrong organ, because he did so after misidentifying and misinterpreting
information, he did so with no purposeful bad intent.
In this case, the surgeon accepted personal responsibility and was punished by being
placed on probation indefinitely. He also has to have another doctor supervise him in the future
whenever he does work. However, the hospital he worked at also assumed some infrastructural
liability because it had to pay damages. Both parties also sustained reputational damage (Riley,
2006).
Outside sources to prevent and mitigate reporting medical errors include increasingly
web-based systems, as well as more direct observation by independent parties. Recent studies
have shown that a combination of traditional prevention methods like paper logs combined with
more cutting-edge methods like internet surveys may be the most effective way to reduce
medical errors (Wolf and Hughes, 2008).

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[Name] 1/7/2021 Liability Discussion This case in Massachusetts in 2006 involved a prestigious and seasoned surgeon who removed a patient’s kidney instead of her gallbladder. The initial surgery was supposed to be a gallbladder removal of an 84-year-old female patient via a laparoscopic tool. However, the error happened when the surgeon misidentified the patient’s kidney, which was “unrecognizable,” as her gallbladder, and then further misinterpreted test results so that he thought he had confirmation of the organ’s location. Although the patient had a full recovery and eventually didn’t even need her gallbladder to be removed at all, the surgeon was placed on probation indefinitely (Riley, 2006). To me, the Hippocratic oath means that doctors swear to uphold values of integrity, honesty, and concern for their patients’ wellbeing. In this case, the doctor’s error came fro ...
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