Sarah Miesch, 32, underwent unnecessary surgery in September 2024 at the University Hospital in Basel, Switzerland. In fact, after a tax carried out by the establishment’s laboratory, the thirty learned that cancer cells were in their cervix, part of which had to be removed. “I was super nervous before the operation. I was going to take something out of my body,” Sarah Miesch told Swiss media SRF.
But although the operation went without problems, the 30-year-old received a call from the hospital explaining that his sample had unfortunately been exchanged with another patient before the surgical intervention. “For a few seconds, the sample and its identification number were separated. Then there can be confusion if we treat several samples at the same time and we are not concentrated enough,” justified Alexandar Tzankov, laboratory manager at the University Hospital of Basel.
Result of this error: Sarah Miesch suffered an unjustified operation, which could affect her health and that of her future child. “Since part of my cervix has been removed, it becomes shorter. This increases the risk of premature birth in the event of pregnancy. It worries me a lot,” the 30-year-old testified.
A compensation of 4,000 euros
“The patient’s bodily integrity has been violated. He would never have consented to the operation if he had had good laboratory results,” said Martin Lutz, his lawyer, a specialist in patients’ rights.
First compensated up to just 1,000 Swiss francs (i.e. 1,074 euros), Sarah Miesch eventually saw her compensation go to 4,000 Swiss francs (i.e. 4,298 euros). In addition, the 32-year-old woman will have the costs of a possible premature delivery covered by the Basel University Hospital insurance.
Source: BFM TV
