Man dies after doctor removes the wrong organ during surgery, widow says

SANTA ROSA BEACH, Fla. ( WMBB ) — A widow says a Florida doctor removed the wrong organ while performing surgery on her husband, leading to his death and prompting an investigation.

William ‘Bill’ Bryan, 70, and his wife Beverly were visiting their rental property in Destin, Florida, on Aug. 19 when Bill felt pain on his left side.

“He started having some pain in his left shoulder, his neck and his left side. So we went to Ascension Sacred Heart on the Emerald Coast and he was admitted,” Beverly told Nexstar’s WMBB.

Beverly, a retired nurse, said a doctor at the medical facility diagnosed a spleen issue and insisted on performing surgery on it.

“We called Bill’s doctor, here at home in Northwest Alabama, and he told Bill that he would have surgeons here in North Alabama waiting when we got home,” Beverly explained. She said she tried to convince the doctor in Ascension Sacred Heart to let her take Bill back to Alabama, or have him transported but was told Bill would “bleed to death” if he was moved.

According to Joe Zarzaur of the Zarzaur law office, instead of removing Bill’s spleen, the doctor removed his liver on Aug. 21. Bill died on the operating table.

A pathologist reportedly told Beverly a bag labeled “spleen” contained Bill’s liver. Beverly said a medical examiner then performed an autopsy and confirmed Bill still had his spleen.

“Everyone knows you can’t live without your liver. It’s about the same thing as if they had pulled out your heart. His heart,” Beverly said. “I know I’m not the only wife who’s lost her husband suddenly, but the loss of my Bill was exceptionally unnecessary and brutal.”

The doctor was said to have been practicing medicine for 14 years. Zarzaur claims, however, that the same doctor was involved in another wrong-site surgery within the past two years, with the previous case being settled at the same facility in 2023.

Zarzaur and Beverly say they want justice.

“I would go so far as to say just be very careful if you’re even seeing the doctor for something non-surgical,” Zarzaur said. “That guy, I would not allow him to do anything with anybody here.”

“We do not want this to happen to anyone else, but for this particular individual especially,” Beverly said. “I didn’t realize it takes so long for a doctor to lose a license. I thought it would be something, you know, as soon as this was known, it would be immediate. That is not the case.”

In a press release issued on Aug. 30, Ascension Sacred Heart said, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family. Sacred Heart Emerald Coast’s leadership is investigating this matter.”

Since then, the surgeon has been removed from multiple medical office websites including North Walton Doctor’s Hospital, HCA Florida, and Ascension Sacred Heart.

The Walton County Sheriff’s Office says it is working with the medical examiner’s office and the Office of the State Attorney to review “the facts involving the death of William Bryan to determine if anything criminal took place.”

“At this time, it would be incorrect to say criminal charges have been filed,” the sheriff’s office said. “Our agency asks for the public’s patience as these cases are extremely complex and take time to investigate. The only reliable source of information regarding any criminal case will come from our office.”

Zarzaur said he is starting the six-to-nine month pre-suit process that must be followed before any civil lawsuit can be filed for medical malpractice.

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