"No appropriate measures such as referral to a higher-level hospital"
A doctor in his 70s who perforated a patient's colon during a colonoscopy was found guilty again in the appellate court.
On the 1st, the Criminal Division 5-1 of Incheon District Court (Presiding Judge Kang Bu-young) dismissed the appeal of male doctor A (74), who was tried on charges of professional negligence causing injury, and upheld the first trial's sentence of six months imprisonment with a two-year probation.
The appellate court stated, "The defendant caused colon perforation and other injuries to the victim during the colonoscopy but subsequently neglected his professional duty of care and failed to take appropriate measures for the victim," adding, "It appears he ordered the discharge without paying close attention to the symptoms of the victim who complained of pain."
It continued, "The defendant did not fulfill the best duty of care required of an average internal medicine specialist, which ultimately resulted in the victim suffering serious injuries such as peritonitis," and ruled, "There is no special reason to change the sentencing after the original judgment."
Earlier, A was indicted on charges of causing a perforation in the colon while performing a colonoscopy on patient B, a person in their 70s who visited an internal medicine clinic in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, on April 12, 2021. After the endoscopy, when B complained of abdominal pain, A conducted an X-ray but diagnosed that "no clear signs of perforation were found" and told B to be discharged.
However, B's pain did not subside, and three days later, B visited a university hospital. There, B was diagnosed with colon perforation and peritonitis and eventually underwent surgery.
The prosecution argued, "The victim was elderly and had a history of open abdominal surgery, increasing the likelihood of intestinal perforation, so the endoscopy should have been conducted more cautiously," and "The defendant forcibly inserted the endoscope when it did not pass easily through the colon, causing injury."
A claimed, "I fulfilled my professional duty of care during the endoscopy and treatment process, so there is no negligence," but the first trial court did not accept his claim.
The appellate court also judged, "Typically, it takes 30 minutes to 1 hour to recover from a sedated colonoscopy, but if recovery took more than 5 hours, appropriate measures such as referring the patient to a hospital capable of performing CT scans of the abdomen and pelvis or transferring to a higher-level hospital should have been taken," and concluded, "The original sentence cannot be considered too harsh."
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