Duntsch's trial has been called a precedent-setting case, as it's the first time that a physician has been convicted on criminal charges for actions in the course of their medical work and malpractice involving botched surgery. Even worse, some of the patients never got the chance to wake up. Boop said that Duntsch spent his final year as an attending physician and could not operate independently. Death'? Dr. Hassan Chahadeh, the owner, said when Duntsch had applied for privileges, his record was clean. Former neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch is one of the most infamous doctors ever brought to trial in a criminal case, and with good reason. After a fall in her kitchen, Martin experienced chronic back pain and sought out surgery to alleviate it. He was smart. However, Mayfield still woke up with paralysis on occasion. Duntsch was suspected of having used cocaine the night before the operation. [9][24][19][7] After several days, Kirby was brought in to repair the damage and later described what he found after opening Glidewell back up as the work of a "crazed maniac". His case is receiving renewed attention in the media. I am sorry in advance that this blog post is so long. The Legislature has also made suing hospitals difficult. The television series Dr. Death based on the incident, began streaming on Peacock in July 2021. However, part of the problem was proving that Duntsch's actions were willful as defined by Texas law. Dr. Duntsch assured Muse that the pain was normal and prescribed him, strong pain killers, causing him to spiral into an addiction. Officers said he was driving on the left side of the road with two flat tires. Everything went perfect in there." D Magazine gave him the nickname in . He will not be eligible for parole until 2045, when he will be 74-years-old. Prosecutors also faulted Duntsch's employers for not reporting him. Dr. Death in surgery. He completed a spine fellowship program at the Semmes-Murphey Clinic in Memphis for his surgical residency, spending the standard five years on neurosurgery and one-year learning general surgery. Dr. Christopher Duntsch appeared to havean impressive resume, but left a trail ofpain and devastation for those who trusted him with their health. He was nicknamed Dr. D. and Dr. Death for malpractice resulting in the maiming of several patients and killing two of them while working at hospitals in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Duntsch, https://www.propublica.org/article/dr-death-christopher-duntsch-a-surgeon-so-bad-it-was-criminal, https://www.dmagazine.com/healthcare-business/2021/10/a-witness-to-dr-death-in-the-presence-of-a-sociopath/, https://www.dmagazine.com/publications/d-magazine/2016/november/christopher-duntsch-dr-death/, https://www.oxygen.com/true-crime-buzz/who-were-the-victims-of-dr-christopher-duntsch, https://www.dallasnews.com/news/investigations/2014/03/02/planos-baylor-hospital-faces-hard-questions-after-claims-against-former-neurosurgeon/, https://www.texasobserver.org/anatomy-tragedy/, https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/2015/08/25/7-chilling-thoughts-of-jailed-neurosurgeon-christopher-duntsch/, https://www.texasmonthly.com/the-daily-post/greg-abbott-enters-fray-in-lawsuits-involving-sociopath-doctor/, https://www.dmagazine.com/frontburner/2017/02/a-jury-now-controls-the-fate-of-neurosurgeon-christopher-duntsch/, https://www.thedailybeast.com/victim-of-real-life-dr-death-believes-there-are-others-like-him-out-there?ref=scroll, https://www.oxygen.com/true-crime-buzz/what-happened-to-discgenics-co-founded-by-dr-death-christopher-duntsch, https://www.texasobserver.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Morguloff-Complaint.pdf. Did Christopher Duntsch have a wife and kids? During his short tenure, he spent little time in the operating room. Duntsch is a former Dallas neurosurgeon who, through . Christopher Duntsch was a neurosurgeon who radiated confidence. Christopher Duntsch, once a supremely confident neurosurgeon with a solid rsum and a wealth of potential, fled town in disgrace last year under a scalding cascade . He ran two labs, gained experience writing grants, and earned more than $3 million in funding for research projects. The series peers into the torturous crimes of . Christopher Duntsch - AKA Dr. Death - spent 18 months as a practicing surgeon at multiple Texas hospitals until he had his license revoked in 2013. Duntsch approached Pam Trusty about being on camera during a follow-up visit where she was still in pain. He then packed it with too much of a substance intended to stop the bleeding. His resume looked brilliant on paper," journalistMatt Goodman said of Christopher Duntsch's ability to continue to gain employment at Texas hospitals despite a deadly track record. Shughart countered that the 2011 email, sent after his first surgeries went wrong, proved that Duntsch knew his actions were intentional. Soon afterward, he severely maimed Jeff Glidewell after mistaking part of his neck muscle for a tumor during a routine cervical fusion, severing one of his vocal cords, cutting a hole in his esophagus and slicing an artery. Death'? Lee Passmore was thirty-seven and worked as a field agent for the Collin County medical examiner. [19], In July 2015, approximately a year and a half after his license was revoked, Duntsch was arrested in Dallas and charged with six felony counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, five counts of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury, and one count of injury to an elderly person. However, on January 6, 2012, a week after the surgery, Dr. Duntsch performed another operation on Passmore. When Duntsch finally returned on Monday, he was fired. [16] Kirby also recalled that Duntsch's skills in the operating room left much to be desired; as Kirby put it, "he could not wield a scalpel".[4]. Passmore had a herniated disc in his lower spine pressing on a nerve causing him pain. However, things soon went south. The True Story Of Christopher Duntsch, The Killer Surgeon Known As Dr. [29] Texas Attorney General and current Governor Greg Abbott filed a motion to intervene in the suits to defend Baylor Plano, citing the Texas legislature's 2003 statute that placed a medical malpractice cap of $250,000 and removed the term "gross negligence" from the definition of legal malice. "I called Dr. Duntsch up, and I said, 'I saw this online.' He knew this couldn't have been a one-time mistake. [36] On February 20, 2017, he was sentenced to life in prison. He remained there for several months before being allowed to return to the residency. The director of neurosurgery at UT Southwestern, Carlos Bagley, testifying for the defense, said that "the only way this happens is that the entire system fails the patients." Duntsch had his surgical rights temporarily suspended after his botched surgery on Summers and his first patient back was 55-year-old Kellie Martin. Though he appealed his conviction in 2018, it was denied. [33][34] The indictments were made four months before the statute of limitations were to run out. Duntsch continued to medicate Morguloff with prescription pain killers and ignored the change in his condition. He thought surgery might give him some relief and stop his need for drugs. Since Duntsch's departure was technically voluntary, Baylor Plano was under no obligation to report him to the Texas Medical Board or the National Practitioner Data Bank. They didn't have enough evidence to stop him because he hadn't done anything wrong yet. An investigator by trade and nature, Passmore started digging into Dr. Christopher Duntsch. Fennell required months of rehabilitation to be able to walk with a cane, and was left unable to walk for more than 30 feet or stand for more than a few minutes without having to sit down again. At the time, Duntsch was accused of injuring 33 out of 38 patients in less than two years before the Texas Medical Board revoked his license. To top it all off, he was operating on the wrong portion of her back. He thought it was odd that Duntsch wasn't working at Baylor Plano anymore, so he called his insurance company, who stated Christopher Duntsch was in good standing. Baylor Plano again ordered Duntsch to take a drug test. [4], Upon applying for work, he looked extremely qualified on paper: he had spent a total of fifteen years in training (medical school, residency and fellowship), and his curriculum vitae was twelve single-spaced pages. Christopher Duntsch ended up at Millsaps College in Mississippi to play football and was offered financial aid. The former neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch was finally brought to justice after injuring and maiming over 30 of his patients during surgery and allegedly causing the deaths of two more. An MRI revealed that multiple bone fragments in his spinal canal were compressing and adhering to his S1 nerve and that Duntsch had installed the hardware incorrectly. She suffered a stroke as a result. [38][39] On December 10, 2018, the Texas Court of Appeals affirmed Duntsch's conviction by a 21 split decision. The story of Dr. Death, Christopher Duntsch, feels like something out of a movie or book. He had complex regional pain syndrome, a rare type of chronic pain that caused his skin to blister and peel off. Baylor wanted Duntsch operating quickly and often so they could be reimbursed for the monies they had advanced to him. "After building a flourishing neurosurgery practice, everything suddenly changes when patients entering Dr. Duntsch's operating room for complex but routine spinal surgeries start leaving permanently disabled or dead. Christopher Daniel Duntsch was born in Montana on April 3, 1971, and raised alongside his three siblings in an affluent suburb of . Over the course of two years, Christopher Duntsch operated on 38 patients in the Dallas area. Although he wasn't a talented athlete, he trained for hours on his own and made it as a linebacker on his high school football team at Evangelical Christian School in Memphis. The series is set to premiere on July 12 and will feature a star-studded cast. As Burke says in "Dr. Death," "No matter what happens, no matter what somebody does to you or the people you love, all you're gonna get is $250,000. Christopher Duntsch is currently imprisoned at the O.B. The series follows two other surgeons, along with . It told the unfortunately true story of Doctor Christopher Duntsch, who was eventually sentenced to life in prison for maiming an elderly patient. Premiering Thursday on . [35], The last charge was for the maiming and paralyzing of Efurd. Young let him buy her an appletini, and they felt a connection; eventually, she went home with Duntsch. Having exhausted his football eligibility, Duntsch decided to switch to a career in medicine. Film & TV 'Dr. Death' Condemns Christopher Duntsch, but the Real Culprit Is Texas's Broken Health-Care System I helped break the story on the convicted surgeon, but Peacock's dramatized . Why do Slipknot wear masks and what do they look like without? Several of Duntsch's surgeries at Baylor Plano resulted in severely maimed patients: Baylor Plano officials found that Duntsch failed to meet their standards of care and permanently revoked his surgical privileges. In effect, plaintiffs have to prove a tough case without access to the necessary hospital records. 2-Dr.Randall Kirby, a hero. Philip is one of more than 30 people maimed by Dr. Christopher Duntsch, nicknamed Dr. Death by the media. As the trial team put it, the "scary pattern" of Duntsch's actions became apparent to the others in the office, leading the DA to give the green light to take the case to a grand jury. Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! ", You know in the beginning he talked about marriage. No one came out and spoke with Kellie Martin's family or informed them of her condition during this time. Duntsch received his undergraduate degree from the University of Memphis and stayed in town to receive an M.D. As he lay there in agony, Duntsch was nowhere to be found. Dallas-based surgeon Christopher Duntsch was also the subject of a Wondery podcast titled "Dr. Death." (Dallas County Jail) The indictment accused Duntsch of wide-ranging malpractice, including . When Martin awoke from anesthesia, she was screaming and clawing at her legs which had become patchy and full of purple streaks and spots. However, he sewed up Glidewell with the sponge still in place despite others in the operating room warning him about it. His CV also conveyed he earned a Ph.D. in microbiology from St. Jude Children's Research Hospitals, graduating summa cum laude. He was arrested for DUI in Denver, taken for a psychiatric evaluation in Dallas during one of his visits to see his children, and was arrested in Dallas for shoplifting. Trusty would later find out there was no award and it had just been a paid advertisement. He was left with only one vocal cord, permanent damage to his esophagus, and partial paralysis on his left side. A neurosurgery expert for Duntsch's defense team himself said, "The conditions which created Dr. Duntsch still exist, thereby making it possible for another to come along.". [4] Mayfield died of COVID-19 in February 2021; according to his wife, he had been vulnerable to the virus due to complications caused by Duntsch's botched surgeries. He was then brought on board at the Dallas Medical Center where he continued his carnage. Mary Efurd: While Brown was dying, Duntsch was operating on Mary Efurd, a 71-year-old anxious to return to her treadmill after surgery to relieve her back pain. She was dancing at a strip club in Memphis, and Duntsch's issues with his business, DiscGenics, grew more severe. Christopher Daniel Duntsch was born in Montana on April 3, 1971, and raised alongside his three siblings in an affluent suburb of Memphis, Tennessee. After the operation, Brown woke up and seemed fine, but early the following day; she lost consciousness. And its all because of one surgeon named Christopher Duntsch a.k.a. This meant Summers could still feel pain, but was unable to move from the neck down. After 13 days of trial, the jury needed only four hours to convict him for the maiming of Efurd, and on February 20, 2017, he was sentenced to life in prison. He said even a person with the most basic sense of human anatomy would know they were operating in the wrong area. Dr. Death (2021 TV series) Dr. Death is an American crime drama miniseries created by Patrick Macmanus, based on the podcast of the same name, focusing on the titular Christopher Duntsch, a neurosurgeon who became infamous for permanently mutilating his patients, killing two of them. By this time, Jerry Summers, his childhood friend, had moved from Tennessee to live with Duntsch. The Peacock originalDr Deathis based on atrue story. Summers asked Duntsch to fix his chronic neck pain from a high school football injury that had gotten worse after a car accident. Passmore focused on recovery and getting back to work in the months following his surgery. Inside The Death Of Chris Benoit, The Professional Wrestler Who Killed His Family And Then Himself, Archaeologists Just Uncovered A Massive Roman Phallic Carving In Spain And It Might Be The Biggest Ever Found, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. Despite this refusal, Duntsch was allowed to finish his residency. But he yearned to play linebacker for a Division 1 team and set his sights on the Colorado State Rams. [7], Shughart argued that Duntsch should have known he was likely to hurt others unless he changed his approach, and that his failure to learn from his past mistakes demonstrated that his maiming of Efurd was intentional. Even though he lived in Colorado, he returned to Dallas to see his two sons. [19] Prosecutors sought a sentence long enough to ensure that Duntsch would never be able to practice medicine again. So as Duntsch operated on Efurd, he quarreled with Kissinger and his supervisors, insisting on a craniotomy for Brown. Mayfield died of COVID in February 2021; according to his wife, he had been vulnerable to the virus due to complications caused by Duntsch's botched surgery. Unfortunately, when Morguloff woke up, he began to experience continuous pain, paresthesia, and loss of sensation in his left leg. For instance, he came to work wearing the same tattered scrubs for three days in a row. Wendy Young knew her ex-boyfriend Christopher Duntsch's medical career was unraveling, but she wasn't prepared for what she said was his bizarre behavior that coincided with his fall from grace as a surgeon.. He realized he'd seen that hole for three straight days Duntsch hadn't changed his scrubs all week. During surgery, he cut a major vessel in her spinal cord. Nevertheless, it took until June 2013 to find the "pattern of patient injury" required to justify suspending Duntsch's license, despite receiving complaints dating back to 2011. Passmore met with Dr. Duntsch and was impressed by his confidence; he would fix him. One screw was jabbed directly into her spinal canal and had skewered the nerves that control one leg and the bladder. [9] Duntsch completed his undergraduate degree in 1995, then continued on to an ambitious MDPhD program. [4][49], Last edited on 14 February 2023, at 04:48, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Baylor Scott & White Medical Center Plano, Texas District and County Attorneys Association, "Dr. Duntsch defense expert: "The only way this happens is the entire system fails the patients", "Plano Doctor Suspended After Two Patient Deaths", "Former Neurosurgeon Faces Life In Prison After Guilty Verdict", "What Was Dr. Christopher Duntsch's Background And Why Were People So Impressed With The Man Later Known As 'Dr. Duntsch filed a patent for the technology, and he listed himself as one of the inventors even though he had not discovered it. However, during training for neurosurgery he followed a research path and did fewer operations than most trainees. Convinced that he was a clear and present danger to the public, they urged the Dallas County district attorney's office to pursue criminal charges. Duntsch did not respond to messages from the hospital for a few hours, then the next day scheduled an elective surgery on Efurd rather than care for Brown. Contact Us | Privacy Policy | Accessibility Policy | Compact with Texans | Website Linking Policy; Please contact Pre-Licensure, Registration and Consumer Services at . The sponge triggered a severe blood-borne infection that caused Glidewell to become septic. A Texas jury found Christopher Duntsch guilty Feb. 14 of maiming patients who had turned to him for surgery to resolve debilitating injuries. Henderson and Kirby feared that Duntsch could move and theoretically get a medical license in another state. She bled to death . [19][25][7] She later recalled waking up feeling "excruciating pain", a "ten-plus" on a scale of 1 to 10. In 2011, Christopher Duntsch met Wendy Young at the Beauty Shop bar in Memphis. Jerry Summers believed that his best friend Christopher Duntsch was a talented neurosurgeon who would cure his chronic neck pain. Brown was left in a coma for hours before Duntsch finally acquiesced to her transfer. Morgan says they spent a lot of time in clubs. The suit alleged that Baylor Plano made an average net profit of $65,000 on every spinal surgery performed by Duntsch. He has taken Baylor Plano to court over changing the Texas law requiring patients to prove that a hospital intended to harm them when it granted privileges to someone unsafe. His first and only surgery with MISI was on a Thursday in September 2011 at Baylor Plano. Young had family in Dallas and decided she would go with him if he picked that city. My surgery was 3 months ago but i noticed difference right away. Death.. He earned his M.D. ", "Plano's Baylor hospital faces hard questions after claims against former neurosurgeon", "Barry Morguloff's suit against the Baylor Health Care System", "Was Wendy Renee Young Dr. Death's Wife? bland funeral home petersburg, virginia obituaries, idletyme reservations,
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