Man given vasectomy by mistake after 'wrong patient was brought in to operating room'

Dr Nanikram Vaswani has admitted to the tribunal that he failed to check the patient's medical notes, identity or follow surgical checklists

Siobhan Fenton
Thursday 17 March 2016 19:12 GMT
The procedures took place at Broadgreen Hospital in Liverpool
The procedures took place at Broadgreen Hospital in Liverpool

A doctor from a Liverpool hospital has admitted misconduct after he accidentally gave a vasectomy to the wrong patient. A medical tribunal has heard that Dr Nanikram Vaswani was meant to be performing an operation to remove scar tissue from the patient however a series of failures meant that he performed the life changing operation instead.

Evidence submitted to the tribunal suggested that the error had occurred when patients complained about waiting times, The Liverpool Echo reports. It is alleged that the patient at the centre of the inquiry, known as Patient A, had arrived at Broadgreen Hospital, Liverpool, at 07:30 on the morning of the intended procedure in February 2014 and was placed in a waiting area with men due to have vasectomies. Further patients arrived at 11:00 and were attended to first, despite the earlier group of men waiting considerably longer. Frustrations were expressed among the first group about waiting longer and “a certain amount of anger was displayed by patients on that day.”

As a result, the order list for operations was changed. However, the operating staff were not informed of the alteration.

Christopher Dawson, consultant urological surgeon told the tribunal: “There was some disquiet among patients as to the order in which they were being seen. Patients who arrived at 07:30 were up in arms that patients who arrived at 11:00 were being seen first.

“It is my understanding Patient A was brought into theatre outside of sequence for these reasons.”

Dr Vaswani reportedly admitted to the tribunal that he had failed to confirm the patient’s identity before conducting the procedure. He also reportedly admitted other errors, including not following surgical checklists, not reviewing the patient’s medical notes and not keeping records of his communications with the patient once he realised the mistake.

In addition, once the error came to light, he tried to reverse the vasectomy by performing another operation, despite General Medical Council guidance that he should not do so because he had not conducted such a procedure for several years.

The panel will now review whether Dr Vaswani should be allowed to continue practising medicine in light of the incident.

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