As a part of my job, I have occasional contact with a one-footed woman.
She claims that, while undergoing some sort of fairly minor foot surgery, her entire foot was amputated by accident, and that the hospital has somehow “fixed” things so that she cannot sue for damages.
I have a serious problem believing that, but I thought I’d ask here.
Is there any way that a hospital could cut off someone’s foot by accident without being legally liable?
-David
Point of clarification: By “fixing” things, the lady wasn’t referring to a monetary settlement.
Basically, loss of a foot is a possible outcome from many surgical procedures on the foot. This is generally explained before the surgery, when informed consent is obtained. Loss of said foot due to complications of the procedure would be quite defensible. Loss of the foot due to error in doing the procedure or in the aftercare, would not be, however.
Hope that helps.
Ahhhhh! Now that makes sense. Thanks!
Qadgop’s explanation seems the likeliest, but is it at all possible they had her sign a disclaimer before the operation?
Would such a disclaimer be legally binding?
I don’t think so.
In my experience, some things said by some patients need to be taken with a grain of salt. Depending on the particular patient, sometimes one should take a shaker of salt.
No joke!
I’m pretty sure you nailed it in one, though, Qadgop… in her tale, she simply leaves out the part where she stood a chance of losing the foot during the operation.
-David