How KNH doctors discovered they were operating on the wrong patient

mary kulundu

March 2, 2018 10:08 AM

More than 2 hours into the surgery

More than two hours into a brain surgery, Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) neurosurgeons had not yet realized that they were operating on the wrong patient.

The doctors at the theater only discovered that they had the wrong patient on the operating table after cutting open the patient’s head and realizing that that the blood clot they were going after was not there.

The doctor performing the surgery had examined a CT scan presented to him and identified the blood clot they needed to remove.

Though the scan was correct, it was from a different patient who never made it to the theatre.

According to a report by the Nation, when the doctor noticed the mistake, a senior neurosurgeon on call advised the team to proceed no further, clean up the area and close the head.

NTV was the first to break the news of the surgery performed on a wrong patient at KNH on Thursday night.

As per the report, two male patients; one needing a surgery to remove a blood clot and the other one who only required nursing and medication to heal a trauma swelling on his head, were wheeled into KNH on Sunday.

The confusion came up after a mix-up of the tags used to identify the patients.

A source speaking to the Nation stated: "The staff in the theatre had no way of telling they were operating on the wrong patient because he was unconscious. Besides the file details and the patient label tallied”.

Following the horrific incident which a section of the public said it was mere negligence on the part of the hospital, KNH CEO Lilly Koros went ahead to suspend members of the staff involved in the operation.

Also Read: Uproar among Kenyans after KNH doctors operate on wrong patient

mary kulundu