Man Sues Caja For
Malpractice After Losing
Leg in Stomach Operation
A man is charging the
Caja Costarricense del
Seguro Social (CCSS) for
"mala praxis", says that
he went to hospital to
have a tumour removed
from his stomach and
left the medical centre
without a leg.
Mala Praxix a Latin
expression, to signify
bad or unskillful
practice in a physician
or other professional
person, such as a
midwife, lawyer, etc.,
whereby the health or
welfare of the patient
or client is injured.
The 35 year old man says
he went to the Hospital
San Juan de Dios in
April 2006. The
explanation the man
gives is that the tumour
in his stomach that was
near the femoral artery,
a continuation of the
external iliac artery,
which comes from the
abdominal aorta. During
the operation the
femoral artery was
damaged causing a
thrombosis, a clot
inside a blood vessel,
obstructing the flow of
blood through the
circulatory system.
An examination by
forensic doctors, as
part of the process
following the filing of
charges, found that
there was no medical
malpractice and that the
removal of the leg was a
result of a complication
during the surgery.
However, the victim and
his family insist that
the doctors made a
mistake and that if he
had received adequate
care he would have not
lost his leg.
The CCSS is not speaking
on the subject, saying
it cannot comment on the
matter due to the
pending lawsuit.
The CCSS also will not
comment on any sanctions
against the nurses and
medical centre. The
victim, however, claims
that the was a firing of
the nurses whose under
care he was and others
who were involved in the
operation.
The number of
malpractice cases that
make it court in Costa
Rica are few, most
ending up in the
investigative process.
The increase of interest
in malpractice in Costa
Rica starts around the
year 1984 with a case of
an amputation of a
member in virtue as a
fatal mistake, and it
ended with the
conviction of the
doctors involved in the
case.
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