Denver patient says surgery was canceled due to contaminated tools

Porter Adventist patient said doctor had to abort his spinal surgery after discovering 'contaminant' on surgical instruments


A patient at Porter Adventist Hospital in Denver, Colo., said his doctor had to abort his spinal surgery after discovering "contaminant" on the surgical instruments, according to an article on the 9News website.

“They called my wife and told her there were some contaminated instruments." After that “none of the hospital staff would tell me anything. They were so tight lipped it was incredible,” the man said.

Medical records also say surgical staff discovered a “brown-yellowish, what looked like a pasty material” on one of the instruments.

The same day as the aborted surgery, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) announced a disease control investigation at Porter. The CDPHE said instruments used in some surgeries were not cleaned adequately. The hospital said it identified a gap in the pre-cleaning process, prior to sterilization.

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May 21, 2018


Topic Area: Infection Control


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