Surgeon fined for amputating wrong leg of patient

He went to the hospital and they amputated the wrong leg 1:21

(CNN) -

An Austrian court fined a surgeon more than $ 3,000 for mistakenly amputating a patient's wrong leg.

The 43-year-old surgeon was sentenced to the fine, with half the amount suspended, "for committing grossly negligent bodily harm" at the Linz Regional Court on Wednesday, Walter Eichinger, vice president of the court, told CNN on Thursday. .

• Man's wrong leg amputated in "tragic" hospital confusion

The surgeon, working at a Freistadt clinic, marked the wrong leg for the "planned amputation of the left thigh" on May 18, 2021, and consequently "the victim's right thigh was amputated without any medical indication," he said. Eichinger.

The court awarded compensation of $ 5,666 to the patient's widow, who died before the trial date for reasons unrelated to the amputation, according to Eichinger.

Both the accused and the prosecutor have until 12 noon on December 6, 2021 to appeal the decision.

If they don't, the court's ruling will be final as of December 7, 2021.

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Austria Medical Malpractice