Mother sues Florida hospital for $1M dollars

[karl]

A distraught mother is suing a Florida hospital for $1m dollars after doctors apologised for accidentally circumcising her son.
The mother said she expressly stated that she didn't want the operation performed on her tiny son, who spent his first 10 days fighting an infection in intensive care.
But, she claimed, doctors at South Miami Hospital went ahead with surgical procedure just eight days after the baby was born, after apparently 'misreading' the consent form.
Hospital bosses have admitted the error, saying they are 'deeply sorry' and have vowed to implement new safeguards to prevent a repeat.
But the mother, who gave birth on 24 July, is not satisfied with the apology.
She has filed an assault and battery lawsuit against the hospital as well as a criminal battery report with South Miami police.
'It's a big hospital,' sha told CBS4 news. 'It's a good hospital, and I thought he was safe, he's good there.'
'I didn't want this for him, I'm opposed to circumcision. They didn't have the right to do it.'
She added that it was a long-held tradtion for the men in her family not to be circumcised.
'It's a big deal. In the future, he's going to ask why his dad is one way and he's different.'
Her attorney, Miami-based personal injury specialist attorney Spencer Aronfeld, lodged the lawsuit in Miami-Dade Circuit Court on Monday.
A satement from South Miami Hospital said: 'The baby's circumcision was an unfortunate mistake caused by a misread consent form.'


Mail Online 17 September

[The Batman]

1 million isn't saying she wants justice it's saying she sees a way to get a quick buck by exploiting a small mistake.

[Whisper]

its not a small mistake, thats huge.
I would be FURIOUS
I fully support her in this, I hope she wins.

[The Batman]

1million dollars is excessive and it's not like he's going to have some health issues because of it. If it was something that would have damaged him in a bad way then yea sue for 1 mil but no it's just getting circumcised and even though they should be sued for messing up she won't get 1 million. They'll probably settle out of court anyway.

[nick]

I see it as a serious mistake by the hospital, they carried out a completely unnecssary operation on a child without the parent's knowledge or consent. Like any other operation this one had risks of complications, it could have gone wrong. I would however agree that the amount of damages claimed seems excessive but its right that they should be sued for it.

[CaptainObvious]

1million dollars is excessive and it's not like he's going to have some health issues because of it. If it was something that would have damaged him in a bad way then yea sue for 1 mil but no it's just getting circumcised and even though they should be sued for messing up she won't get 1 million. They'll probably settle out of court anyway.

Not for that kind of mistake it isn't. Unnecessary surgeries deserve rewards in the millions, if only so that hospitals don't fuck around with that stuff.

[Amnesiac]

1million dollars is excessive and it's not like he's going to have some health issues because of it. If it was something that would have damaged him in a bad way then yea sue for 1 mil but no it's just getting circumcised and even though they should be sued for messing up she won't get 1 million. They'll probably settle out of court anyway.

1 million is a lot, but hospitals can't just get away with performing unrequested surgeries. When lawsuits are filed for this kind of stuff, they're hefty for a reason: it sends a message.

Same thing applies when people sue school districts. Lawsuits against schools are why separation of church and state applies to education.

[The Batman]

1 million is a lot, but hospitals can't just get away with performing unrequested surgeries. When lawsuits are filed for this kind of stuff, they're hefty for a reason: it sends a message.

Same thing applies when people sue school districts. Lawsuits against schools are why separation of church and state applies to education.

Yea sends a message that if you mess up I'm going to sue you for way more than it's worth. There's not going to be any bad side effects from this kid getting circumcised(unless she doesn't take proper care) so there's really no need for a hefty lawsuit. If this was something that would cause harm to him in the future and make his life harder than it should be then i'd sue for more than a mil but honestly half of that is what I see fair.

[Amnesiac]

Yea sends a message that if you mess up I'm going to sue you for way more than it's worth. There's not going to be any bad side effects from this kid getting circumcised(unless she doesn't take proper care) so there's really no need for a hefty lawsuit. If this was something that would cause harm to him in the future and make his life harder than it should be then i'd sue for more than a mil but honestly half of that is what I see fair.

I do think a million is a bit excessive, but it comes as no surprise or huge deal to me. Circumcision wasn't requested. Even though it doesn't really affect the baby's well-being, no permission was given to perform the operation. Therefore, it is a legal issue, and the mother can sue for an amount she sees fit.

[The Batman]

There's no doubt in my mind that she should sue.

[nick]

Tom, you seem to want to turn it into an discussion about the right/wrongs/impacts of circumcision, but its not really about that. Its about a hospital and medical staff acting out of control, its about a lack of proper procedures. If that happened over here staff would lose their jobs, the doctor could well get struck off the medical register. Its horrendous to think a medical team can swing into action for no reason at all against the wrong kid. What will their next screw up be?

[The Batman]

Tom, you seem to want to turn it into an discussion about the right/wrongs/impacts of circumcision, but its not really about that. Its about a hospital and medical staff acting out of control, its about a lack of proper procedures. If that happened over here staff would lose their jobs, the doctor could well get struck off the medical register. Its horrendous to think a medical team can swing into action for no reason at all against the wrong kid. What will their next screw up be?
Nick the only thing I'm discussing is how this will affect the child in the future and if the amount she's asking for is the right amount which I feel it isn't. I don't care if circumcision is right or wrong I'd feel the same way if it was any other kind of surgery that wouldn't have a negative impact on the child for the rest of his life. Like I said, yes she should sue but she's asking for more than it's worth. They screwed up and they should have to face the legal consequences but that's also where it should stop at, no one should get fired over something that's not going to kill the kid or permanently handicap him.

[Jess]

they should be sued yes...but 1mil? :S

[nick]

no one should get fired over something that's not going to kill the kid or permanently handicap him.
Well it will reduce the sensitivity of his glans and therefore the amount of pleasure he can get during sex, but I guess thats not a permanent handicap?

[The Batman]

Well it will reduce the sensitivity of his glans and therefore the amount of pleasure he can get during sex, but I guess thats not a permanent handicap?

No that's not a permanent handicap kids not going to need a wheel chair because sex isn't as good as it should be.

[CaptainObvious]

Yea sends a message that if you mess up I'm going to sue you for way more than it's worth. There's not going to be any bad side effects from this kid getting circumcised(unless she doesn't take proper care) so there's really no need for a hefty lawsuit. If this was something that would cause harm to him in the future and make his life harder than it should be then i'd sue for more than a mil but honestly half of that is what I see fair.

We place an exceptionally high value on the human body, even small parts are worth large amounts to many people.

Plus, she obviously isn't going to sue for less than it's worth...

Well it will reduce the sensitivity of his glans and therefore the amount of pleasure he can get during sex, but I guess thats not a permanent handicap?

I have yet to see anyone prove that circumcised people get less pleasure from sex. Not sure it's actually possible to prove that assertion either, since pleasure is entirely subjective.

[Whisper]

not to mention subjecting the infant to unnecessary risk, all surgeries involve some level of risk.

Does the name David Reimer ring a bell for anybody? I watched a documentary about him in a sociology class awhile back. He was born as a healthy baby boy but underwent sexual reassignment surgery shortly after because of a horribly botched circumcision.
The boy who was raised as a girl er something....I can't remember but ya.

Above and beyond being horribly violated it was an unnecessary medical risk that was done without the consent or even knowledge of the legal guardian (mommy).

[ShatteredWings]

not to mention subjecting the infant to unnecessary risk, all surgeries involve some level of risk.

Does the name David Reimer ring a bell for anybody? I watched a documentary about him in a sociology class awhile back. He was born as a healthy baby boy but underwent sexual reassignment surgery shortly after because of a horribly botched circumcision.
The boy who was raised as a girl er something....I can't remember but ya.

Above and beyond being horribly violated it was an unnecessary medical risk that was done without the consent or even knowledge of the legal guardian (mommy).

I saw that. They seriously botched his circumcission then him and his IDENTICAL twin brother were a guinea pig for this psych who wanted to learn more about gender.(interesting consept, totally wrong way to go about it)
and the srs wasn't great. I mean they could have at LEAST given the kid insides if they were going to insist that he was born a girl. You'd think they'd notice that first time sexual. I mean really?

i think he ended up killing himself.
can't say i'm suprised - knowing that you WERE once physically the man you are and being told you're supposed to be a woman.

tangent sorry.

[TLCTugger]

No that's not a permanent handicap kids not going to need a wheel chair because sex isn't as good as it should be.

Who are you to tell someone else how good their sex life gets to be?

The foreskin includes over half a male's sensual nerve endings, it protects the mucosal parts, and it affords an exquisite frictionless gliding mode of stimulation. It feels REALLY good.

Nobody will know for years how well Mario V's circumcision turned out, but only Mario had the right to consent to a penile reduction surgery.

Not to mention the fact that they pulled him from intensive care to do the amputation! The last thing anyone in intensive care needs is cosmetic surgery.

[ShyGuyInChicago]

I read about this case on the Internet. I read a comment that bothered me. The person said that the woman should not sue because her son does not have any complications, he is healthy, nothing can reverse what happened, and that although the hospital made a mistake they apologized and are making sure that such a thing never happens again.

http://cbs4.com/local/South.Miami.Baby.2.1907271.html#comments


By sc1432 posted Sat Sep 11 2010 00:57:17
Thank God your son did not have any problems or complcations from the surgery. I understand you did not want the surgery for your son. To call it battery is just extreme..They did apoligise and they changed there policies so this will never happen again..There is no dollar amount that can put him back the way he was prior to the surgery. So, now it is all about what dollar amount you can get from sueing. If this was really about your son, you would not be looking for a finicial amount. My god it could of been alot worse, if they did a surgery and it affected his motor skills, or caused brain damage. Human beings are not perfect, and the hospital did not intentionaly do something againest your wishes. Filing a law suit just seems like a extreme measure when it will not change anything..How much is a peice of skin worth? Your son is alive and healthy be thankful..Just becasue a error was made, does not mean you run to file a law suit.


This is a response to that comment.
By Joseph4GI posted Sat Sep 11 2010 11:31:55
@sc143 I don't think you understand the magnitude of what has happened here. This woman specifically asked, several times, for her son not to be circumcised. Her son was in intensive care to boot. You really think an apology is enough here? Nothing can give this child back his body, but what has happened here IS MALPRACTICE. What, so nobody should sue their doctor ever? What complete pretentiousness to assume that this mother just wants money. Filing a law suit may not change anything, but it will definitely make doctors and hospitals think twice about being knife-happy charlatans. And inform yourself on the functions of the foreskin, as it is not just "a piece of skin." Circumcision changes the feel, appearance and function of a man's penis for the rest of his life. The foreskin is not just "skin," as the labia aren't just "skin." It's quite a substantial piece of flesh, one that can get to be as big as a 3x5 card. That's a lot of skin, a lot of flesh, a lot of blood vessel

[Tiberius]

Who are you to tell someone else how good their sex life gets to be?

The foreskin includes over half a male's sensual nerve endings, it protects the mucosal parts, and it affords an exquisite frictionless gliding mode of stimulation. It feels REALLY good.


You do realize that ALL of those nerves are still there after the circumcision. If you knew ANYTHING about human physiology, you'd realize that nerves run from the brain and then branch out to different parts of the body. They don't just generate in a place randomly as you would suggest. Those nerve ending are still in the skin on the penis, just in different locations.

I really don't understand how this woman thinks she can put a price on a piece of skin. "Neonatal circumcision has an estimated complication rate ranging from 0.1% to 35%. The vast majority of complications are infection, bleeding, and failure to remove enough foreskin."(AAFP (http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/clinical/clinicalrecs/circumcision.html)) Those are estimates with a HUGE margin of error. Frankly, those complications don't justify $1 million and the fact that nothing is wrong with the child and that it won't harm his ability to earn an income, doesn't justify the amount of money she wants. People in the U.S sue for way too much and they sue way too often. If I were the judge, I'd say that she doesn't have much of a legal standing and that, at the most, it deserves a fine to the state for violating state medical procedures.

[Perseus]

Gee, suing a hospital is so smart. It won't affect it at all and won't send into in some trouble because they lost one mil to some overreacting bitch. She's causing more harm than good by suing over an accidental circumcision.

[nick]

Gee, suing a hospital is so smart. It won't affect it at all and won't send into in some trouble because they lost one mil to some overreacting bitch. She's causing more harm than good by suing over an accidental circumcision.
But its kind of irrelevant that it was a circumcision, again this is not a question about the rights and wrongs of circumcision. Its about a hospital not having proper controls and records as to which operations to perform on which patients. Its pretty frightening really.

[The Batman]

But its kind of irrelevant that it was a circumcision, again this is not a question about the rights and wrongs of circumcision. The circumcision is the big issue of this whole thing and he didn't mention if it was right or wrong in his post at all. To decide how much she gets you have to look at how the operation affects him both now and in the future. So what happened to him is a huge part of this.
Its about a hospital not having proper controls and records as to which operations to perform on which patients. Its pretty frightening really.

The only thing that went wrong is that someone misread the consent form. So they did have everything right up to that point, it's just someone needs to go back to preschool to find out what yes and no means.

[Whisper]

But its kind of irrelevant that it was a circumcision, again this is not a question about the rights and wrongs of circumcision. Its about a hospital not having proper controls and records as to which operations to perform on which patients. Its pretty frightening really.
Agreed.

[PJay]

Have to say i totally agree with Whispers comments on this one. We have a family friend who this was was a big deal for and it did kind of mess him up. The amount has to be enough to make an organisation take notice of it, but it seems kind of wrong taking money from hospitals that could probably use the money to help people (or at least thats how i'd feel if this was in the uk it may work differently over there).

[Perseus]

But its kind of irrelevant that it was a circumcision, again this is not a question about the rights and wrongs of circumcision. Its about a hospital not having proper controls and records as to which operations to perform on which patients. Its pretty frightening really.

I never talked about the rights and wrongs of circumcision. You're one bringing it up. It's better for them to mess up on a surgery that won't have any negative effect on the kid later on in life than them to mess up on something serious. Now they'll be more careful and this most likely won't happen again.

[Lifeguard18]

1million dollars is excessive and it's not like he's going to have some health issues because of it. If it was something that would have damaged him in a bad way then yea sue for 1 mil but no it's just getting circumcised and even though they should be sued for messing up she won't get 1 million. They'll probably settle out of court anyway.

Do you know how many men out there wished that their parents didn't mutilate them at birth? And im one of them. It should've been my decision at 18 years old, its my body, I should have gotten that choice to have the penis I was born born with or decide to have circumcision done. This mom is against circumcision and in the future, it could affect him severly. He will be the only man in the family to have this done to him and once he finds out what happened to him, he's gonna want to know why, why didn't she stop it, why did they do it, why does dad have foreskin and I don't, why don't I have a normal penis, why can't I be like the rest of the family, etc etc. Luckily there's foreskin restoration which is whay im doing. Its not your real foreskin but you do gain back you sensitivity and pleasure but it wont gain back the cells and nerve endings that was taken away. I believe what the mom is doing is good. Im proud of her. But 1mil may seem too much and she may not get it all, but she will get money. This isn't a mistake where you can say, its alright, don't worry about it, just remember not to do it again ok. If life was like that, I would have a penis right now with the foreskin I was born with.

Sent from my DROID2 using Tapatalk

[Jagster]

1000 dollars may be more appropriate than 1 million.

[TLCTugger]

You do realize that ALL of those nerves are still there after the circumcision. If you knew ANYTHING about human physiology, you'd realize that nerves run from the brain and then branch out to different parts of the body.

You're simply dead wrong.

Nerve fibres which carry nerve signals are truncated with any amputation. Nerve endings are specialized sensory organelles that exist at the surface of the skin. When half the skin of the penis is amputated, half the nerve endings are lost as well.

You can watch this instructive YouTube about it:
Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9DoCn3gATE
Part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps1dkbcOKfA

I really don't understand how this woman thinks she can put a price on a piece of skin. "Neonatal circumcision has an estimated complication rate ranging from 0.1% to 35%. The vast majority of complications are infection, bleeding, and failure to remove enough foreskin."(AAFP (http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/clinical/clinicalrecs/circumcision.html)) Those are estimates with a HUGE margin of error.

The difference lies in WHO is doing the estimating. Some call it a complication only if hospitalization is needed. I call it a complication if function is affected. A 2010 direct observational survey by Fletcher showed that about half of adults cut at birth have cosmetic and functional outcomes not intended by their circumcisers. Of course ALL circumcisions have the complication of removing sensual tissue and affecting sensual function.

Frankly, those complications don't justify $1 million

That's for the victim to decide. And since he's too little to take action and since the responsible entities may not be around when he comes of age, his guardian owes it to him to drain the perp's pockets now.

nothing is wrong with the child and that it won't harm his ability to earn an income

Oh, there's a load of stuff I could cut off of you without affecting your earning power. Stop in some time and I'll have at it.

The boy has suffered the amputation of a healthy, normal, sexually valuable body part. He is disfigured. That is a perfectly good reason to sue the person who did it to him.

[Zephyr]

I have to completely agree with Nick on this one. My brother-in-law was an EMT for a number of years, he's training to be a military medic now, and he wants to go to school to become a doctor when he's out of the military. I was just talking to him on the phone last night when I had to take my sister to the ER, and he said that the number of mistakes that he's seen in terms of paperwork alone is horrendous. Incorrect medical histories, known allergies that get neglected to be put on paper work... such small things can become major.

[Sith Lord 13]

It's called punitive damages. If it weren't for the punitive damages, the hospital would have no incentive to make sure this doesn't happen again.

[Asylum]

she should sue, but not for 1 million