NHS Hospital Gives Man Accidental Vasectomy

A man has been given a surprise vasectomy by a British NHS hospital after attending for a relatively routine procedure. It is not yet known whether the operation, which is usually reversible, will be able to be corrected in this man’s case.

The Daily Mail reports that the incident occurred at the Royal Liverpool Hospital in February, and the responsible surgeon has been barred while an investigation is concluded. 

Ian Cohen, clinical negligence lawyer at Slater & Gordon, said: “This is a truly shocking and worrying case. From what we know, there has been a catastrophic breakdown in procedure, as simple checks designed to ensure the correct operation is carried out on the right patient seem to have failed.”

Clinical negligence within the NHS costs British taxpayers between £1.3bn and £2.3bn annually. The man who could potentially be left sterile after his botched urological procedure could be awarded up to £100,000 in damages.

The hospital trust’s medical director, Dr Peter Williams, confirmed the blunder, adding: “We have apologised. We greatly regret the distress this has caused him. We are investigating this fully to understand why it occurred and how we can ensure it does not happen again.”