Surgeon in Austria fined for amputating wrong leg

LINZ, Austria — A surgeon in Austria is facing a fine after she amputated the wrong leg of one of her patients.

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A court found the 43-year-old-surgeon, whose name was not released, guilty of gross negligence and fined her €2,700, BBC News reported. The patient’s widow was also awarded €5,000 in damages.

The patient was an 82-year-old who had a number of medical conditions that impacted both legs but was only supposed to have one amputated. In what was described as a case of “human error,” that patient’s right leg was taken instead of the left in May at the Freistadt Clinic, CNN reported at the time.

During the court hearings, when the surgeon was asked why the incorrect leg was marked for amputation, she said: “I just don’t know,” BBC News reported.

The surgeon no longer works for the clinic where the mistake happened, ABC News reported.

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