Man left with rotting leg after hospital 'loses' him
A 21-year-old Swedish man fears that he will be unable to walk unaided again after Linköping University Hospital lost track of him, leading to a delay in the treatment of a routine foot fracture.
John Bruhne broke his foot while skateboarding and was told by the hospital that he would be home within a couple of days.
Six weeks and eight operations later Bruhne was however still in hospital, according to a report by Sveriges Television Östnytt.
The extended hospital stay was made necessary after staff at the hospital lost track of him as he was moved across several wards.
The subsequent delay in his treatment meant that the muscles surrounding the broken bone began to wither and rot.
Once the hospital had finally located him, Bruhne underwent an emergency operation and three muscles were removed from his bone. He has since undergone a further seven operations to address the injury and ensuing complications.
The 21-year-old expressed concern that he would be unable to make a full recovery from his injury.
"Perhaps I will never be able to walk again. then I think about the sports. That I will never be able to play football or inner-bandy," he said to SVT.
"It is awful that this type of thing has to happen just to save money."
The incident has been reported to the National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) in accordance with Sweden's Lex-Maria laws, the informal name for regulations governing the reporting of injuries and incidents in the healthcare system.
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John Bruhne broke his foot while skateboarding and was told by the hospital that he would be home within a couple of days.
Six weeks and eight operations later Bruhne was however still in hospital, according to a report by Sveriges Television Östnytt.
The extended hospital stay was made necessary after staff at the hospital lost track of him as he was moved across several wards.
The subsequent delay in his treatment meant that the muscles surrounding the broken bone began to wither and rot.
Once the hospital had finally located him, Bruhne underwent an emergency operation and three muscles were removed from his bone. He has since undergone a further seven operations to address the injury and ensuing complications.
The 21-year-old expressed concern that he would be unable to make a full recovery from his injury.
"Perhaps I will never be able to walk again. then I think about the sports. That I will never be able to play football or inner-bandy," he said to SVT.
"It is awful that this type of thing has to happen just to save money."
The incident has been reported to the National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) in accordance with Sweden's Lex-Maria laws, the informal name for regulations governing the reporting of injuries and incidents in the healthcare system.
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