US man sues hospital for losing part of his skull and charging $19k

A US man and his wife are suing a hospital for negligence after the staff lost a piece of his skull and later charged him more than $19,000 for a synthetic replacement when they could not find it, according to a report in theNY Post.

The man, identified as Fernando Cluster, had checked in to Emory University Hospital in September 2022 after he was diagnosed with a brain haemorrhage. Cluster underwent a successful procedure where a part of his skull (4.7-by-5.9-inch) was removed by the doctors.

Cluster was supposed to have the nearly 28-square-inch piece of his skullreimplantedabout a month and a half later when the swelling had subsided.However, when Cluster arrived at the hospital in November for the procedure, the staff could not identify the section of his skull.

“We inspected the freezer where bone flaps are stored and could not find a bone flap with Mr Cluster’s patient identification,” read Cluster’s medical file.

“There were several bone flaps with incomplete or missing patient identification, but we could not be certain which if any of these belonged to MrCluster.”

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Ordeal for Cluster

Rather than have his own bone implanted, Clsuter was told that he needed a synthetic implant which had to be manufactured. By the end of the month, the newly fabricated bone had been placed in Cluster's head but not before he was charged $19,000 by the hospital staff for what they had allegedly lost.

However, Cluster's problems did not go away with the cyborg implant. He contracted an infection afterwards and needed additional surgery which left him unable to walk for some time.

“Mr Cluster subsequently suffered an infection in the synthetic flap, thereby necessitating an additional surgery,” the complaint noted.

By the end of the ordeal, Custer's total hospital bill had climbed to $146,800. Interestingly, the hospital never offered him and his wife any discounts for the treatment, especially after making the huge blunder.

“While my clients are obviously upset that they and their insurance company were billed for the costs related to Emory’s negligence, I’m sure you can understand that their focus is on the egregiousness of Emory losing a part of his body and then having a flippant attitude about it afterwards,” Cluster’s attorney Chloe Dallair said.

Cluster has demanded that the hospital compensate him for the damages after a jury trial.

(With inputs from agencies)