Family awarded $12 million after botched surgery at Madigan Army Medical Center
A U.S. District judge has awarded a family $12 million after a botched surgery at Madigan Army Medical Center that left a toddler disfigured and deformed.
On Tuesday, Judge Ronald B. Leighton awarded $9 million to Braylen Porter, 4, and $1.5 million to each his parents Tyler and Armani Porter.
The case stems from a surgical fire during an operation on September 2, 2015. Braylen, then 13 months old, had undergone surgery to remove a benign cyst above his left eye.
According to court documents, the anesthesiologist and pediatric surgeon didn’t communicate about the planned method of administering anesthesia or how the surgeon would perform the surgery and which devices he would use.
If the anesthesiologist had known the surgeon was using an electrocautery device during the surgery instead of a scalpel, he would have given the patient concentrated oxygen at a lower level, according to court documents. That’s because an electrocautery device is an ignition source for fire, and an oxygen-rich rich environment increases the likelihood of fire.
When the device was activated five minutes into surgery, a fireball ignited, burning up to 10% of Braylen’s body.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/family-awarded-dollar12-million-after-botched-surgery-at-madigan-army-medical-center/ar-AADegmZ
