Left leg is in pain... Austrian doctor who amputated right leg fined 3.6 million won

A doctor in Austria was fined for accidentally amputating a patient's leg. The photo is unrelated to specific expressions in the article. [Image source=Getty Images]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] A doctor in Austria was fined for accidentally amputating a patient's leg. The patient lost both legs.

According to the BBC on the 1st (local time), a local Austrian court sentenced a hospital surgeon to a fine of 2,700 euros (approximately 3.6 million KRW) for negligence causing injury. The court also ordered the doctor to pay 5,000 euros (approximately 660,000 KRW) in damages to the patient's family.

The doctor was in charge of surgery for an 82-year-old patient suffering from diabetic complications in May. The patient was supposed to have the left leg amputated.

However, during the surgery, the doctor mistakenly amputated the right leg. This was discovered two days after the surgery during a bandage change.

The patient later underwent an additional surgery to amputate the originally intended left leg. As a result, due to the doctor's mistake, the patient lost both legs.

It was understood that the patient, affected by dementia and other conditions, was unable to properly comprehend what had happened to them.

In response, the hospital director held a press conference to officially apologize. The medical staff in charge stated, "An error occurred during the process of marking the leg to be amputated just before the surgery," and added, "We asked the patient for confirmation, but the elderly patient could not clearly understand what was being said."

However, the BBC reported that the medical staff failed to properly follow additional verification procedures required before the surgery.

Meanwhile, it is known that the patient died from an infectious disease before the trial.