The family of a South Carolina man who died at a local hospital is now suing a “temp” doctor who operated on their loved one. The family says that the doctor went on YouTube to learn how to perform a surgery.
According to WSPA, Patrick Kelly went to the Union County Medical Center in March 2016 because of a sore throat. Kelly was given medication but later rushed back to the hospital because of an allergic reaction to the medicine. The lawsuit also claims that Kelly was not properly treated throughout the incident.
The New York Post notes that Kelly’s tongue and throat kept swelling, and he struggled to swallow or speak and then began to have trouble breathing. His doctor, Hani Sorour, reportedly attempted to intubate him but could not. It was then that Sorour, instead of consulting with other doctors, allegedly went on YouTube to look up how to perform a cricothyrotomy procedure to help Kelly breathe.
Needless to say, Sorour was unsuccessful, and Kelly died at the hospital of cardiac arrest.
WSPA notes that a coroner called the Union Police Department to investigate Kelly’s death. Investigators apparently found the YouTube page still open on Sorour’s computer.
Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System, which owns Union Medical Center, said that Sorour was a temporary employee hired through the company Locum Tenen, adding that Sorour was no longer practicing medicine at any of Spartanburg Regional’s hospitals after March 2016.
WSPA discovered that Sorour was arrested for misdemeanor assault in Virginia in 2008. He ultimately pleaded guilty and ended up serving 20 weekends in jail. When applying for a license to practice medicine in 2011, Sorour wrote a three-page letter detailing his charges, but they were reportedly never investigated.
“Any patient would want to know has my doctor been accused of a serious crime,” attorney Robert Dodson, who is representing the family, told the WSPA.
Read more at WSPA and the New York Post.