Woman forced to live as double amputee after wrong leg was removed
By Matthew Dietz
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MEIGS COUNTY, Ohio (WLWT) — An Ohio woman has filed a lawsuit against a hospital after she went in to have her leg amputated and the wrong leg was removed.
Sharon Jacks, 74, went to Selby General Hospital in Marietta, Ohio, for an amputation of her right leg, and when she woke up, her left leg had been removed instead.
Jacks had the elective, below-the-knee procedure because of a chronic ulcer in her right leg, her attorney said.
Now, she is living life as a double amputee, battling significant challenges.
“You can imagine somebody that’s a double amputee now, there’s prosthetics, there’s transportation modifications, there’s housing modifications,” attorney Brad Layne said.
Jacks’ attorney said she is an Army veteran and praised her determination and toughness.
The hospital system issued a response to the lawsuit, saying the “adverse surgical event” took place last September. The hospital said a review of the incident confirmed that it was avoidable and that expected operating room procedures weren’t followed. The statement added that the people who were involved are no longer in their positions.
“Our clinical and leadership teams have implemented corrective measures across our organization to prevent a situation like this from recurring. This included mandatory retraining of all surgical employees to reinforce our patient safety policies and procedures, as well as developing additional requirements where needed,” the statement said in part.
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