An army veteran is seeking $10 million from the federal government, accusing the Veteran’s Affairs nurse of repeatedly placing ice packs on his penis after surgery, causing frostbite, ultimately leading to the organ’s partial amputation and need for additional surgery.
The victim filed suit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Louisville for what he calls medical malpractice.
He served in the army in 1968-69 and went to the Veteran’s Affairs Hospital in Lexington for a penile implant with circumcision. It is alleged that the surgery went well, but during recovery a nurse put non-stop ice packs on the victim’s genitals for 19 hours. This was the reason he developed frostbite, which eventually caused gangrene.
It is not only very unfortunate, but is somewhat ironic, that a 61 year old man goes in to have a procedure to enlarge his penis but goes home with part of his organ smaller than he started with. They not only took away his manhood (5 inches of it), but he lost the ability to have sex and to urinate. For that, he will require reconstructive surgery and hope for the best.
The problem arose when the medical care staff allowed ice packs continuously to remain on his genitals for about 19 hours, to relieve pain and swelling. Gangrene set in within a few weeks, causing the doctors to remove a five-inch section (127 mm) of the victim’s penis, a procedure for which he still requires medical care.
The victim initially pursued compensation under the Federal Torts Claims Act, a civil procedure, which requires a person to claim with the government and prevents them from suing until the claim is resolved.
However, the Department of Veteran’s Affairs reviewed his claim and rejected it in July. They felt there was no negligence on the part of the VA Hospital or any of their employees. The victim was forced to sue.
Believe it or not, another Kentucky man last year sued his physician for $16 million after having his penis amputated following a trip to the doctor for a circumcision to relieve inflammation. A jury eventually sided with his surgeon who said he decided to amputate after seeing cancer.
Contact one of our Gacovino Lake attorneys at 1-800-246-HURT (4878).
