O.T. Another death at Ottawa Hospital Complications from WLS

Coming from someone who has had surgery in Ottawa, I feel complete faith in the surgeons that are operating there.  My deepest condolences to the family.

Agreed.  Dave I know it seems there should be no reason for problems.  But I think that reflects how much we vastly under-estimate how complicated anesthesia and surgery really are.  It's like watching a 767 take off - we take it for granted that nothing can go wrong until one falls onto a highway with our family member on board.  Otherwise we fly all the time and assume that all will be well.

Things can and do go wrong all the time in operating rooms that may or may not have anything to do with the surgical team's skill.

Mike

 Well said, Mike!  Perfect analogy.

Such a sad situation eh, Sue?  I'm just so conscious of all this right now given that my surgery of March 8 turned into three surgeries - and I am back to the OR tomorrow.  None of this, in my opinion, is about my surgeon's skill and I'd go back to him in a minute.  I knew going in that this procedure (Pani) was going to be complicated due to the size of pannus being removed, and in my heart I was worried about wound healing.  Well here we are - I wasn't wrong.  But this too will pass, I am confident.

If surgical misadventure is at fault then let the chips fall.  I just think we should all be very careful pointing fingers until the story is known.

Cheers Sue and all,

Mike

 Yes, you have to put your faith in your medical team.  I think you hit on a key concept though:  "...and in my heart I was worried about wound healing."  We should never discount the power of our own thoughts going into our surgeries.  If you believe in concepts like The Secret or Dr. Wayne Dwyer's "Change Your Thoughts, Change your Life" you'd understand how much affect our own thoughts can wield in our lives.  

One experience I can offer is when my dad suffered a very serious infection (sepsis) following a routine surgery.  After he spent 3 1/2 weeks in a coma, 5  total weeks in ICU, 1 month in the ward and 2 months in rehab to relearn all of his motor skills did we learn that during his illness his surgeon only gave him a 25% chance of survival.  Had we known this during the worst of his ordeal could our thoughts have influenced the outcome?  I truly believe that they would definitely have done so.

I'm sorry you had such a rough go of it but am glad to hear that you are doing well and going into this next surgery confidently.  I KNOW it will go well for you!!

Cheers, Mike!

I agree with you completely Sue.  I have tried throughout all this (since pre-RNY) to put good energy out there - and I strongly believe in those concepts you talked about.  That's a bit part of our belief system in my family.

I was actually less concerned about the wound healing part of the RNY than the pani.  Part of my dilema Sue is that I was head nurse of plastics and other services for a long time, and I knew in my gut some of the risks I faced.  I can't erase all the memories of what I've seen over 30 years in the biz.  But I have to say I didn't go into this with negative thoughts, I don't think.  Rather I was just prepared for possiblities even if I tried to push them out of my mind, you know?  I am confident that tomorrow's surgery will be the last and will resolve my "little" problems that are outstanding.  Meantime I lost "mini-me" that was hanging off the front of me and am feeling better than I've felt in years.  

Thx again for the support Sue, and I know we all mourn the death of this poor woman who likely just wanted her life to be better.  Terrible.

Mike

So they started doing surguries in September and since then three people have died and another has spent more then 3 weeks in ICU.  But the program is just really unlucky..... and keeps getting bad patients..........

I think it is more likely that they are new at doing this and still learning.........

I am sorry to hear of the woman's passing. My condolences go to her family.

catnip

I would be careful here Catnip. Every surgeon can have a bad run. Even Dr. L. Now, don't get me wrong, I think he's the absolute best. But even he had a bad run there. . .

I don't think it serves anyone's interest to start unfounded rumours about poor surgical skills.

We know going into surgery that there is a risk of death. We also go into the surgery morbidly obese, often with pre-existing health conditions. This makes us more susceptible to post surgical complications.

And, we still don't know the details. So, quite frankly, I'm unwilling to speculate on what may have caused her death.

Take care,

Andrea

Edited to add: I have the utmost respect for Dr. L. I believe he is one of the best bariatric surgeons Ontarians have ever had access to. My comment was meant to point out that even the best surgeon can have patients who suffer from complications. It would be terribly wrong to accuse any surgeon of poor surgical skills every time a patient had a complication & died. So, until we know more information, it would be wrong to speculate & pass judgement.

 Agreed Andrea.  We do need to wait to hear the details before we can know what really happened.

I was gonna say exactly the same thing Andrea......  I remember Dr. L having a pretty rough patch there for awhile.  Knowing what I know about surgery and the potential for complications - I would never have assumed it was his lack of skill or technique (as he is an extremely reputable surgeon)- but I guess other surgeons are not afforded the same benefit of doubt.

This women was definitely high risk - just with her age alone (67).  It's sad how people immediately blame the surgeon when there are issues.