Some surgical errors are so serious that the medical community agrees they should never happen. But in operating rooms across New Mexico, patients still suffer injuries because a hospital fails to follow basic safety steps or standard procedures.
At Poulos & Coates, we help families find out why. Many of our clients come to us after surgery with the same question: Was this just a risk of the procedure, or did the hospital make a critical mistake?
In cases involving never events in surgery, the harm usually points to a safety failure that responsible providers should have prevented. Here’s what you need to know.
What Are Never Events?
A never event is a medical error that leads to serious injury or death because a hospital or surgical team skipped a required safety step or failed to follow the correct procedure. These are not rare complications or unpredictable outcomes. They represent clear violations of patient safety standards.
The National Quality Forum first introduced the term “never event” to highlight catastrophic medical mistakes that standard protocols aim to prevent. In surgery, these failures often involve problems with communication, patient verification, or equipment handling, each putting patients at unnecessary risk.
Hospitals in New Mexico follow national patient safety guidelines that outline how to prevent never events in surgery. Although state regulations focus on reporting serious incidents after they occur, medical providers are still expected to maintain proactive safety systems. When hospitals and surgical teams fail to meet these expectations, patients are the ones who suffer the harm.
Examples of Never Events in Hospitals
Medical groups and patient safety organizations compile lists of errors that fall into the never-event category. Below are examples of never events in hospitals that involve surgical procedures:
- Surgery on the wrong body part;
- Surgery on the wrong patient;
- Leaving a sponge, tool, or medical device inside the patient after surgery;
- Using contaminated instruments or equipment during surgery;
- Administering the wrong type of anesthesia or improper dosage; and
- Post-operative complications from known safety violations, such as skipped infection control steps.
These events occur because the surgical team missed or ignored critical safety steps during the procedure. That failure directly injures the patient. Patients who experience these errors often face longer hospital stays, additional surgeries, or permanent complications that require lifelong care and ongoing medical treatment.
What Causes Surgical Mistakes?
Many patients and families ask what causes surgical mistakes that rise to the level of a never event. The answer usually involves multiple breakdowns across the surgical process, not just a single person’s error. These failures build up through missed steps, poor communication, and lapses in basic safety routines.
Common causes include:
- Failing to mark the correct surgical site;
- Miscommunication between surgeons, anesthesiologists, and nursing staff;
- Skipping time-out procedures designed to catch wrong-site or wrong-patient errors;
- Fatigue or distraction during surgery;
- Improper equipment handling or maintenance;
- Incomplete staff training or supervision; and
- System-level failures in hospital policy or oversight.
Each of these problems reflects a violation of patient safety standards. Hospitals and surgical teams are expected to prevent these errors by following well-established protocols. When those safeguards break down, the risk of a never event increases.
How Never Events Relate to Malpractice
When a patient suffers harm because surgical teams ignore safety standards during surgery, the case often qualifies as medical malpractice. Hospitals and surgical teams are legally and ethically responsible for following patient safety protocols. Ignoring those protocols puts lives at risk. New Mexico law allows patients or their families to pursue a claim when that failure leads to serious injury or death.
A malpractice case after a never event in surgery usually involves both financial and personal losses. Patients may need compensation for medical bills, lost wages, additional surgeries, rehabilitation, and long-term care. Many families also seek help because they want the hospital to take responsibility and fix the underlying safety problem that led to the injury.
Consider a case where a surgical team leaves a sponge inside a patient after abdominal surgery. The error isn’t discovered until weeks later when the patient returns to the hospital with severe pain, infection, and the need for emergency surgery. The additional procedures, hospital stays, and recovery time create not only physical hardship but also financial stress and emotional trauma. This kind of event turns a routine procedure into a life-altering situation for the patient and their family.
Malpractice claims may cover the cost of recovery and prompt hospitals and surgical centers to review policies, retrain staff, and strengthen safety measures to prevent similar mistakes.
What to Do If You Suspect a Never Event
After a serious surgical injury, hospitals do not always explain exactly what went wrong. Patients and families are often left without a clear answer, especially when the error involves a never event. That’s why it’s essential to take action quickly.
Steps to consider:
- Request copies of all medical records related to the surgery;
- Document all conversations with doctors and hospital staff; and
- Contact a malpractice lawyer with experience in surgical error cases.
Working with an attorney gives patients and families a way to move forward after a surgical mistake that never should have happened. A malpractice claim holds the hospital accountable and helps secure the financial support needed for recovery, care, and long-term stability.
Talk to a New Mexico Malpractice Lawyer Today
Never events in surgery are some of the most serious forms of medical negligence. Handling these cases requires both medical and legal knowledge. Poulos & Coates is one of the only law firms in New Mexico focused exclusively on medical malpractice.
Our team includes experienced trial lawyers, a licensed medical doctor who is also an attorney, and two nurses who assist in reviewing cases from both medical and legal perspectives. With over 100 years of combined experience, we have the background to handle these complex claims and the track record to pursue them effectively.
If you or a loved one suffered harm because of a never event in surgery, contact Poulos & Coates at 575-523-4444 for a free consultation.
Greig Coates, M.D., J.D.
Over the last thirty years, Dr. Coates has successfully represented plaintiffs in every conceivable type of medical malpractice lawsuit–from single-physician cases to complex litigation involving over a dozen doctors and several hospitals. Dr. Coates has taken several thousand physician depositions in his career involving every known physician specialty and sub-specialty, and almost as many depositions involving hospital personnel such as nurses, techs, and administrators. He has tried several dozen cases to successful verdicts.
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