US surgeon charged with killing patient after removing the liver instead of spleen

SUMMARY

• A U.S. surgeon, Thomas Shaknovsky, has been charged with second-degree manslaughter after a patient died during a spleen removal surgery.

• The procedure allegedly went wrong, with reports claiming the wrong organ was removed, leading to fatal complications.

• The case has raised serious concerns about surgical negligence, hospital oversight, and previous malpractice allegations against the doctor.

A U.S.-based surgeon, Thomas Shaknovsky, has been charged with second-degree manslaughter after a routine surgery took a tragic turn, leading to a patient’s death.

The patient, Mr Bill Bryan, had gone to the Ascension Sacred Heart of the Emerald Coast Hospital in Florida after experiencing sharp abdominal pain while visiting his property in Okaloosa County. 

Medical scans showed he had an enlarged spleen, but there were no signs of active bleeding at the time.

Doctors recommended a spleen-removal surgery, which is typically considered safe, although it is still a major procedure. 

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However, Bryan was initially hesitant and wanted to return to his home in Alabama for further medical evaluation.

According to reports, the surgeon continued to persuade him over several days until he agreed to undergo the operation.

The surgery was scheduled for a Saturday, when hospital staffing was reportedly limited. During the procedure, complications arose.

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The surgeon switched from a minimally invasive approach to an open surgery after encountering difficulty accessing the spleen.

What followed quickly escalated. According to accounts presented in court, there was significant confusion during the operation, and the patient began to bleed heavily.

In the process, the surgeon mistakenly removed the patient’s liver instead of the spleen.

Bryan, 70, went into cardiac arrest due to severe blood loss. Despite efforts by the medical team to stabilise him, including an emergency blood transfusion, he could not be saved.

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The surgeon later claimed that a ruptured spleen aneurysm caused the excessive bleeding. However, this account reportedly did not match what other members of the surgical team witnessed.

Following the incident, his medical licence was temporarily suspended for one month.

Further reports revealed that this was not his first malpractice case. In 2023, he was fined $400,000 after mistakenly removing part of a patient’s pancreas instead of the adrenal gland during another surgery.

The case has raised serious concerns about surgical safety and accountability, as investigations continue.

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