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Woman Sues Good Hope Clinic in Peru after a Gauze Pad is Found in her Stomach

(LIP-ir) -- María Teresa Glave Gómez, mother of María Teresa Braschi - a well-known journalist in Peru, has pressed charges against Good Hope Clinic for having endangered her life and caused her irreparable damage after she underwent surgery at the clinic.

Glave stated that her life is currently in danger because of the clinic's negligence. It was reported that gauze dressing was found inside of Glave's stomach, which is believed to have been there since a hysterectomy (surgical removal of the uterus) performed in 1992.

"Because of the clinic's negligence, a completely adhered tumor which goes from the rectal area to the gallbladder has been found. There are also other pathogens which formed over time. In conclusion, I have chronic swelling, intense pain and recurring infections," stated Glave.

The elderly woman has appealed to Peru's judiciary for help and has demanded that she be compensated for all of the damages caused. She has stated that this has been a crime against humanity.

Glave explained that because of the illnesses she had after the operation in 1992, she could not continue with a normal life and had to quit her job as a university professor and psychologist.

In a letter sent to Glave's lawyer, Good Hope Clinic stated that there was not a tie between the gauze pad and the surgery which was performed. The clinic assured that it would not assume responsibility for claims which could not be proven.

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# Robert Conant says :
4 November, 2007 [ 18:19 ]

Here's hoping this lady helps alongs consumer/patient rights from the legal responsibilities of health providers and commercial services.

# Splaktar says :
6 November, 2007 [ 10:35 ]

Yeah, this looks like it will be pretty hard to prove.  How do you live with a gauze pad in your stomach for 15 years and not notice it?

When she first started having problems years ago, she never had an X-Ray or an MRI?  Maybe she just trusted in her local shaman to cure her...

It would also be interesting to see which 'doctor' or hospital is responsible for 'finding' this gauze pad after 15 years?  Was this operation video taped? 

As we've seen lately, there are plenty of illegal 'doctors' in Peru, it would not be hard to get them to operate on you and install a gauze pad so that you could setup your fraud.

On the other hand, we've also seen that mistakes happen frequently in Peruvian hospitals.  Doctors and nurses here do keep track of the # of gauze pads that go in and make sure that the same # comes out, but people do make mistakes.  They happen even more so with the crowded condition and the uncleanliness of many of Peru's hospitals. 

But I think that Good Hope is a private hospital that is fairly well funded and respected.

# MARÌA TERESA says :
11 May, 2008 [ 11:50 ]

responsability has to be faced, not a joke , after 14 years, not 15, several infections and a lot of hard medicines have been taken to control infection: the clinical serious as it could be cannot hide criminal matter.
mt.