A ‘No’ to Wrong Amputations
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TAMPA, Fla. — A Florida hospital where doctors accidentally cut the wrong foot off a patient began a policy Thursday requiring staff to write the word “No” with a felt marker on patients’ limbs that are not to be cut off.
Willie King, 51, had surgery to remove his gangrenous right foot at Tampa’s University Community Hospital last month. But he awoke to find that Dr. Rolando Sanchez had removed his left foot.
The hospital said King had been prepared for surgery incorrectly so that only his healthy left foot was in sight when surgery began.
In another policy change, the surgeon and head nurse now must agree on what work is to be done before any cuts are made.
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