Doctor Gets Suspended Sentence for Leaving Wire in Patient

Apr 16, 2024 | News On Japan

OSAKA - The Osaka District Court handed down a guilty verdict on Monday, with a suspended sentence, to a doctor accused of leaving a catheter wire inside a patient, which subsequently penetrated the heart and led to the patient's death.

In 2017, Dr. Shinkichi Kamata (76) conducted a catheter insertion surgery at a hospital in Neyagawa City, Osaka Prefecture. He left a wire inside the body of Hiroshi Suzuki (then 69) without performing proper follow-up procedures, which led to the wire piercing Suzuki's heart and causing his death. Dr. Kamata was charged with professional negligence resulting in death.

Throughout the trial, Kamata denied any causal link between the retention of the wire and the patient's death, pleading not guilty. Meanwhile, the prosecution had sought a prison sentence of two years.

In its verdict, the Osaka District Court declared, "The defendant was aware of the possibility that the wire had been left inside but neglected to address it, which had serious consequences," and consequently sentenced Kamata to one year in prison, suspended for three years.

Source: YOMIURI

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