Season One, Episode Six of The Med Disaster Podcast, hosted by Dr. Sam Rhee, recounts the August 2024 death of 70-year-old Navy veteran William Bryan during a planned splenectomy at Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast in Okaloosa County, Florida. After severe left-sided pain and imaging showing a splenic abnormality with blood in the peritoneum, Bryan initially wanted to return to Alabama but agreed to surgery after warnings from surgeon Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky and the hospital’s chief medical officer.

The late-day operation began after Shaknovsky arrived an hour late, encountered poor visibility, bleeding, and a massively distended colon, and converted from laparoscopic to open surgery. Shaknovsky misidentified anatomy, stapled and cut the inferior vena cava, and during the ensuing chaos removed and mislabeled Bryan’s liver as the spleen, insisting it was an enlarged, displaced spleen. Bryan suffered catastrophic hemorrhage and cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead at 7:06 PM. Pathology confirmed the removed organ was a fully intact liver; autopsy found the spleen untouched and no splenic artery aneurysm, confirming death from surgical injury.

The episode describes Beverly Bryan’s account of being given a false explanation, the medical examiner ruling, the family’s legal action, and investigations revealing prior Shaknovsky errors in 2023 (removing part of a pancreas instead of an adrenal gland and a bowel perforation during a gallbladder surgery). It covers Florida’s emergency suspension of Shaknovsky’s license, Alabama’s review, the hospital’s response, and allegations that the hospital was negligent in supervision and credentialing.

The episode compares the case to a 2006 Massachusetts incident where a surgeon removed a kidney instead of a gallbladder and discusses contributing factors such as fatigue, time pressure, poor visualization, cognitive overload, OR hierarchy, and system safeguards, emphasizing surgical checklists, crisis management, institutional accountability, and patient questions about surgeon experience and safety protocols.

#MedDisaster #Surgery #PatientCare #HealthcarePodcast #SurgicalSafety #MedicalError #PodcastLife #ListenNow #TrueStory #truecrime

(This podcast uses AI generated material)

S01E05 The 35-Year-Old Feeding Tube: A Hidden Medical Error

In this episode of The Med Disaster Podcast we delve into the story of Deborah Lowe, a Wisconsin woman who lived with unexplained pain for 35 years due to a feeding tube mistakenly left inside her body after a traumatic surgery in 1989. The podcast explores the hidden medical error, the impact on Deborah's life, and the broader issue of retained surgical objects. The episode highlights the importance of patient safety practices, effective communication, and the resilience of patients who seek answers. Deborah's tragic experience serves as a cautionary tale and a call for vigilance and compassion in healthcare.

#MedDisasterPodcast #MedicalMystery #Healthcare #PatientSafety
#MedicalError #Podcast #HealthStories #Resilience #PatientAdvocacy #HiddenErrors

S01E04 The Wrong Patient Wrong Heart Procedure

What happens when the medical staff force you to undergo a procedure you don't want to have?

In this episode of the Med Disaster Podcast, Dr. Sam Rhee delves into a harrowing true story from 2002, where a series of 17 small mistakes at the University of California San Francisco Medical Center led to a 67-year-old woman named Joan Morris undergoing a wrong and potentially life-threatening cardiac electrophysiology study.

Through an intricate timeline and close examination of hospital protocols, the episode explores how similar-sounding names, miscommunications, and procedural oversights converged into a 'never event,' urging a reevaluation of patient safety systems. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of transparency and vigilance in the healthcare system.

#MedDisaster #PatientSafety #MedicalError #HealthcarePodcast
#TrueStories #HospitalStories #MedicalMistakes #PatientAdvocacy #MedicalPodcast #SurgicalSafety #Healthcare