In 2011, Christopher Duntsch met Wendy Young at the Beauty Shop bar in Memphis. As part of their investigation, prosecutors obtained a December 2011 email written by Christopher Duntsch. Jeff Glidewell Today: Where Is Dr. Death's Last Patient Now? - Heavy.com He is not eligible for parole until 2045, when he will be 74 years old. Glidewell was left with only one vocal cord, permanent damage to his esophagus and partial paralysis on his left side. After he arrived in town, he secured a deal with the Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano and was given surgical rights at the hospital. The sponge triggered a severe blood-borne infection that caused Glidewell to become septic. 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. Kenneth Fennell, the first patient Duntsch operated on at Baylor Plano, was left with chronic pain after Duntsch operated on the wrong part of his back. [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]. MISI representatives stated he would brag about his capabilities and be critical of the work of other surgeons. 'Killer' Surgeon Gets Life for Maiming Patient - Medscape Philip is one of more than 30 people maimed by Dr. Christopher Duntsch, nicknamed Dr. Death by the media. During surgery, Duntsch operated on the wrong part of Fennell's back. He had complex regional pain syndrome, a rare type of chronic pain that caused his skin to blister and peel off. Even if a plaintiff wins the maximum award, after you pay your lawyer and your experts and go through, potentially, years of trial, not much is left. Mayfield also suffered from random fainting spells that happen every few weeks. Christopher Duntsch's Emails Are Threatening and Bewildering - Yahoo Moving made sense for both of them. To become a neurosurgeon, one typically has to complete over 1000 surgeries in residency, but somehow, reporter Laura Beil discovered that Duntsch only completed 100. A neurosurgeon in Dallas, Texas, who once described himself as a "stone cold killer" was sentenced to life in prison on February 20 for maiming a woman named Mary . This meant Summers could still feel pain, but was unable to move from the neck down. Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! [14] He persuaded Young to come with him; Young agreed, since she had grown up in the Dallas area. 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. He declared bankruptcy after listing debts of over $1 million. He called Duntsch's fellowship supervisor in Memphis, as well as the supervisor of Duntsch's residency; it was then that he learned about the incident that led him to be referred to the impaired physician program. He was put on probation for three weeks and told to stick to relatively minor procedures when he returned. Anatomy of a Tragedy: The Story Behind 'Sociopath Surgeon' Christopher Duntsch is a former neurosurgeon born in 1971 in Montana . Base compensation was $600,000 a year for two years, beginning on June 14, 2011. Despite this refusal, Duntsch was allowed to finish his residency. My surgery was 3 months ago but i noticed difference right away. Duntsch was suspected of having used cocaine the night before the operation. A deranged surgeon runs amok, maiming and killing multiple patients, unhindered by a medical community sworn to police itself. Prosecutors also faulted Duntsch's employers for not reporting him. Jerry Summers Was 'Dr. Death's' Best Friend. This case was filed in Dallas County District Courts, Dallas County Civil District Courts located in Dallas, Texas. February 22, 2017. [42] The four hospitals that employed Duntsch have ongoing civil cases against him. [16] In 2021, he was profiled on CNBC's American Greed. However, he sewed up Glidewell with the sponge still in place despite others in the operating room warning him about it. He earned his M.D. It had come from Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano. Dr. [35], The last charge was for the maiming and paralyzing of Efurd. Unfortunately, it's all too real. Is Christopher Duntsch In Jail? Arrest And Charges Details Im the only clean minimally invasive guy in the whole state.. A disc in his lower spine had blown out, and the pieces had to be picked out of the space above. He said, "Randy, you were right. Dr. Death in surgery. among the top 12 percent of medical school graduates in his class named to the elite Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. Summers had a credit card in his name connected to Duntsch's account and would drive him around, balance his checkbooks, and pick up his dry cleaning. Legacy Surgery Center in Frisco (now Frisco Ambulatory Surgery Center). Anatomy of a Tragedy. In April 2015, Duntsch was arrested again for shoplifting $887 worth of merchandise from a Dallas Walmart. Kissinger also noticed that Duntsch had pinpoint pupils and hardly seemed to blink. Hoyle called the surgery sloppy enough to cancel the remaining four operations he had scheduled with Duntsch and vowed never to work with him again. The surgery was supposed to take less than 45 minutes and ultimately lasted over four hours. They argued that Duntsch was motivated to continue operating because the lucrative salary of a neurosurgeon would solve his mounting financial problems. He might have been fired from the Institute but was still a surgeon at Baylor Plano. Vaccinated people who catch Covid are reporting unique symptoms - the 4 signs to watch for, Man, 34, charged with murder after woman, 63, killed in house fire as family vow 'you'll never be forgotten', Six dead after private jet crashes and explodes in fireball between two houses sparking forest blaze near golf course. Dr. Death: La verdadera historia detrs de la nueva serie sobre el ex Even though he lived in Colorado, he returned to Dallas to see his two sons. He was tragically mistaken. However, red flags surfaced early on, as nurses wondered if Duntsch was under the influence of drugs while on duty. When Martin awoke from anesthesia, she was screaming and clawing at her legs which had become patchy and full of purple streaks and spots. In his deposition, Summers admitted he made up the pre-surgery cocaine binge because he felt Duntsch had abandoned him, as both his doctor and his friend. She was dancing at a strip club in Memphis, and Duntsch's issues with his business, DiscGenics, grew more severe. Christopher Duntsch, the onetime Dallas neurosurgeon whose butcher-like techniques killed two patients and permanently injured more, feels made to exist at the center of a work of fiction; perhaps, On May 24, 2011, Christopher Duntsch signed a physician services agreement with Rimlawi and Won's Minimally Invasive Spine Institute (MISI) in Dallas. DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Former neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch has been sentenced to life in prison for a series of botched spinal surgeries, reports CBS . He will not be eligible for parole until 2045, when he will be 74-years-old. Duntsch is a serial maimer and killer. The surgical disasters of neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch led to his jailing in 2017, setting a legal precedent. 'Dr. Death' Case Holds Lessons for Risk Managers, Hospitals Before working with him, Dr. Hoyle said that he didnt know how to feel about his fellow surgeon. The Legislature not only puts the burden of proof on the plaintiff instead of the defendant in medical malpractice cases, but it also allows hospitals to keep information about doctors confidential. Dr. Christopher D. Duntsch, Inactive - Plano, TX - RateMDs 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. 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. Duntsch suggested drilling a hole in Brown's head to relieve the pressure, but was refused permission. One of the patients who suffered disastrous consequences was Jerry Summers, the boyfriend of Megan Kane and a friend of Christopher Duntsch. Duntsch's next patient was Jeff Glidewell. Duntsch was fired after he performed a surgery and immediately left for Las Vegas, leaving no one to look after his patient. During this time, he ran two successful labs and raised millions of dollars in grant funding. [4][5] In 2017, he was convicted of maiming one of his patients and sentenced to life imprisonment. 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. He was then brought on board at the Dallas Medical Center where he continued his carnage. Duntsch arrived at the hospital about 45 minutes after Efurd's surgery had been scheduled. Wendy Renee Young and Christopher Duntsch first met in 2011 at a Beauty Shop bar in Memphis. No one came out and spoke with Kellie Martin's family or informed them of her condition during this time. Those are the words that Dr. Christopher Duntsch, a Dallas neurosurgeon, wrote to his girlfriend in 2011 in the midst of a two-year period that left 33 of his 38 patients maimed, wounded or . He decided to turn to neurosurgery, which can be a lucrative field. Dr. Death in surgery. Assistant district attorney Michelle Shughart, who led the prosecution of Duntsch, later recalled that Henderson and Kirby reached out to her demanding to testify against Duntsch; according to Shughart, doctors rarely testify against each other. Jerry Summers, who grew up with Christopher Duntsch in Tennessee, was left a quadriplegic after agreeing to let "Dr. Death" operate on his neck. She also said they snorted cocaine from a small pile he kept on a dresser in his home office. He was left with pain so debilitating he could not work any longer and now spends most of his days at home. Duntsch had also installed hardware into her muscle, not her bone, so loose that it moved when you touched it. Marshall Muse was scheduled to have a disc removed in his back. Did Christopher Duntsch Have Any Successful Surgeries? [37][4], Over objections from Duntsch's lawyers, prosecutors called many of Duntsch's other patients to the stand in order to prove that 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.