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Doc charged after mum loses limbs after abortion

Ben McPartland
Ben McPartland - [email protected]
Doc charged after mum loses limbs after abortion
The young mum who lost four limbs after an abortion is fighting for justice. Photo: AFP

A gynecologist at a hospital in France has been charged this week for causing "unintentional injury" to a young mum, who had to have four limbs partially amputated following an abortion.

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A family fighting for justice after a mum of three had to have four limbs partially removed following an abortion, received a boost this week when it was revealed a gynecologist had been charged over the accident.

A mother of three, Priscilla Dray was admitted to the maternity unit of Bordeaux University Hospital for the abortion in the summer of 2011.

The operation lasted several hours and on the Friday evening the 36-year-old shopkeeper was able to return home to her family.

But the day after the operation Dray began to suffer from pain and was running a high fever. She returned to the maternity ward where an on-call doctor took a blood sample, before sending her back home.

Dray’s condition continued to deteriorate however, and on Sunday morning she was diagnosed with septicemia. 

She was prescribed antibiotics and told to return to the maternity ward, where she arrived at around noon. 

But it appears she was given the antibiotics too late from them to work, and the infection took hold resulting in tissue necrosis and eventual amputation.

Dray had to have her feet, her right forearm and left hand amputated.

Four years after the horrific incident the family's battle for justice was given a boost this week when the doctor was charged with causing "unintentional injuries" to the patient.
 
According to legal expert Jean-François Lortie, specialist in medical accidents, the gynecologist should have administered antibiotics straight after the abortion.
 
It was Lortie's report that lead to the doctor being charged, but the gynecologist's own lawyer insisted that they will seek  counter expertise.
 
"This is a complex case. For me this is not about a criminal wrongdoing. There is a chain of responsibilities, which the investigation will have to determine," said the doctor's lawyer.

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