New York Medical Malpractice Lawyer Questions Doctor Who Operated on the Wrong Eye of a 4-Year Old

NEW YORK, NY, May 08, 2011 (Press-News.org) Recently, a surgeon operated on the wrong eye of a 4-year-old boy and he may have suffered permanent eye damage in what was supposed to be a simple procedure. Apparently, before the surgery, a nurse mistakenly covered the doctor's mark which indicated the eye needing correction.

How did the doctor explain herself? She says she simply "lost sense of direction and didn't realize I had operated on the wrong eye until I was done operating on the eye."

New York medical malpractice lawyer David Perecman believes this answer is not sufficient.

"Dr. Shawn Goodman needs to explain why she continued the surgery if she was not certain what eye to perform surgery on," said Perecman, founder of the New York medical malpractice law firm, The Perecman Firm.

When the surgeon realized her mistake, she then operated on the correct eye --without his parents' consent. "Another significant error," said New York medical malpractice lawyer Perecman.

According to the boy's mother, Tasha Gaul, a nurse came out during the surgery and said "we're operating on both eyes." She then said that before she or the boy's father had a chance to react, the nurse had vanished.

The four-year-old had been seeing Goodman every six months since his parents discovered his eye wandered.

"Operations on the wrong site or the wrong patient should never happen, but too often they do," said New York medical malpractice lawyer Perecman. "Unfortunately, Jesse was the victim of a wrong site surgery and the long term effects are unknown at this time."

What is known is that since the wrong site operation, Gaul has not seen any improvement in the right eye and now the boy's left eye appears to be wandering. He also has red marks in the whites of his eyes and has to put drops in three times a day.

According to New York medical malpractice lawyer Perecman, it is not only the doctor who is responsible for ensuring that surgery is performed on the correct body part. Nursing staff and other medical staff can be held liable for these medical mistakes, as well. Wrong site surgery is such a serious medical mistake that the World Health Organization (WHO) has published a 19-item surgical safety checklist recommended for use in every operating room for every procedure.
Medical malpractice can include any error relating to surgery. New York medical malpractice lawyer Perecman believes there is little doubt as to the negligence of the medical professional when surgery performed on the wrong body part. This would include surgery on the wrong eye, arm, knee or other body part.

For the past 30 years, the personal injury accident, auto accident, construction accident, and medical malpractice lawyers at The Perecman Firm, PLLC have championed all types of cases concerning personal injury. David Perecman, founder of the Firm, is a Board Director and the past Secretary and Treasurer of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association (NYSTLA) and a chair of its Labor Law Committee. Mr. Perecman's achievements have brought him recognition as an Honoree in the National Law Journal's Hall of Fame, in New York Magazine's "The Best Lawyers in America" and The New York Times Magazine "New York Super Lawyers, Metro Edition" for the years 2007-2010.

Website: http://www.perecman.com