You would think that medical professionals would be pretty adept at not throwing away healthy organs when a transplant is on the line. That seems like a very straightforward and simple step that all medical professionals should be able to avoid. But you’d be wrong — and a recent story unfortunately proves that.
A 24-year-old woman was going in for a kidney transplant in 2012 after her brother offered to give up one of his kidneys to her. It was determined that the two were “perfect” kidney matches. After surgeons removed the brother’s kidney, a nurse mistakenly tossed the healthy kidney out. It was lost and could no longer be used. As a result, the woman had to endure months of waiting, which included more surgeries and medical treatment.
The woman eventually received a less-than-perfect kidney match, which was transplanted into her a few months after the botched surgery. However, because of the reduced quality in the match, the woman will likely need a new kidney sooner than if her brother’s kidney had been given to her. She will also likely need added medication and treatment — not to mention the fact that her brother just lost a kidney, and will have reduced life quality as a result, for absolutely nothing.
Medical professionals are human. They make mistakes just like anyone else. But their mistakes can literally ruin or end lives. So when they do make a mistake, they have to be held accountable. In this case, the family sued and earned a $650,000 settlement.
Source: Norwalk Reflector, “Family gets $650,000 in botched kidney case,” June 1, 2014