San Diego Personal Injury Attorney Blog

Scripps Mercy Hospital in Hillcrest has been cited by the California Department of Public Health for leaving a surgical sponge in a cancer surgery patient. The hospital is being fined $25,000 for the error. The fine is the third penalty issued against the hospital since 2007, when the state began issuing fines against medical centers for such preventable mistakes.

In the incident at Scripps Mercy, a 4 inch by 4 inch surgical sponge was left in a patient when she underwent a hysterectomy. A year after the surgery, a radiologist discovered what was thought to be a mass in a routine MRI. The woman, who was not named, reported hip and back pain following the operation. In this particular case, the Union Tribune reported that doctors performed a second surgery on the patient in February of 2009 to remove the object, but were unable to locate it. The sponge was finally removed in a third surgery in June 2009.

In addition to the fine against Scripps Mercy Hospital, the Department of Public Health issued nine other citations against six other hospitals in the state of California. Two hospitals received multiple fines. Southwest Healthcare System in Murietta was given three fines totaling $225,000, and Kaiser Foundation Hospital in Fontana was given two fines totaling $75,000. Hospitals may appeal within 10 days, or submit correction plans explaining how mistakes will be avoided in the future.