"Operating Room Left Unattended by Both Anesthesiologist and Surgeon"... Patient Who Walked In Now Unconscious

YTN Reports on Orthopedic Surgery Anesthesia Incident
Cardiac Arrest Occurs While Both Anesthesiologist and Surgeon Are Absent
Family Claims "Violation of Duty"

A woman in her 40s who underwent elbow surgery fell into cardiac arrest and lost consciousness while both the anesthesiologist and the operating surgeon were absent from the operating room.

On April 27, YTN reported on an incident that occurred in January this year at a hospital in Gangnam, Seoul, where a woman in her 40s, who had undergone elbow surgery, suffered cardiac arrest immediately after the procedure. According to the report, the patient walked into the operating room on her own but has not regained consciousness for nearly three months.

Operating room. This photo is not directly related to the article. The Asia Business Daily DB

According to the report, anesthesiologist A administered anesthesia to the patient and then left the operating room about 10 minutes later. This was before orthopedic surgeon B entered the operating room. Regarding his absence, A stated, "It is common practice for freelancers to work in this way," adding, "I am not exactly sure if the director was aware of this. I left before the director arrived."

Subsequently, B performed the surgery but also left the room after completing the procedure, and the patient ultimately did not regain consciousness. B claimed not to have known that the anesthesiologist had left, explaining, "I was focused on the surgery and assumed the anesthesiologist was monitoring the patient."

After the surgery, when the patient did not regain consciousness, a nurse noticed abnormal signs and contacted anesthesiologist A twice. A instructed the administration of an antidote, and it is reported that approximately nine minutes after the second administration, the patient went into cardiac arrest. According to YTN, the patient is a mother of middle and high school-aged children and has been unconscious for about three months due to hypoxic brain injury.

The patient's family claims that the medical staff failed to fulfill their duty to continuously monitor the patient's condition. The patient's husband pointed out, "There is an obligation to check the patient's oxygen saturation and other vital signs, but both the operating surgeon and the anesthesiologist left the scene at the same time."

YTN capture

The Korean Society of Anesthesiologists clearly states that anesthesiologists must continuously observe patients while administering anesthesia. It also stipulates that if the anesthesiologist is absent, a skilled medical professional must remain with the patient.

An anesthesiology specialist told YTN, "If the anesthesiologist had been right next to the patient, abnormal signs could have been detected more quickly," and added, "It is crucial to quickly identify why the vital signs are unstable, but in this case, the response was delayed or possibly handled incorrectly."

The hospital stated, "We are checking the facts and cannot comment at this time." The patient's family claims the medical response was inappropriate and is taking legal action against both the operating surgeon and the anesthesiologist.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.