NHS pays out millions to patients of surgeon convicted of needless breast operations

Why do some of these consultants/surgeons start to believe they're God?


The NHS has been forced to pay out almost £10m in compensation to more than 250 patients of a rogue surgeon found guilty of carrying out needless breast operations on patients who were left traumatised and scarred.

Consultant surgeon Ian Stuart Paterson, 59, was convicted on Friday of 17 counts of wounding with intent, relating to nine women and one man. He was also convicted of three further wounding charges.

Jurors at the seven-week trial at Nottingham crown court decided the surgeon carried out “extensive, life-changing operations for no medically justifiable reason” on the 10 patients between 1997 and 2011.

But he could have more than 1,000 additional victims, among them hundreds of private patients of Spire Healthcare who may never be compensated for botched and needless operations.


Ian Paterson: the 'likable' breast surgeon who wounded his patients
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Paterson, described in court by one victim as being “like God”, lied to patients and exaggerated or invented the risk of cancer to convince them to go under his knife.

The jury at Nottingham crown court heard the surgeon, who saw hundreds of patients a year, carried out the operations for “obscure motives”, which may have included a desire to earn extra money.

Paterson, wearing a black suit, blue shirt and red tie, sobbed as the jury returned the guilty verdicts.

Judge Jeremy Baker released the disgraced surgeon on conditional bail ahead of sentencing in May, telling him that he faced a custodial sentence. The maximum sentence for wounding with intent is life.

One patient who gave evidence in the trial had 27 biopsy cores taken from her healthy right breast, which one expert told the court were “random”, and had “absolutely not” received medical best practice. In tears, Frances Perks told the jury she had been “conned” into thinking she was high risk by Paterson, who had “destroyed [her] life”. She said she hoped Paterson “rots in hell”, adding: “He’s a psychopath. Why would anyone in their right mind do operations to people knowing that they didn’t need them?”

Paterson denied misrepresenting patients’ test results to dupe insurers into paying for surgery, but other former patients have told the Guardian that the surgeon exaggerated or invented the risk of cancer and, in some cases, claimed payments for more expensive procedures than those he had carried out.

Ch Supt Mark Payne called Paterson a “controlling bully, who played God with people’s lives so he could live a luxurious lifestyle”.

He said: “The procedures carried out by Ian Paterson on vulnerable patients were unnecessary and caused physical suffering, scars and wounds to the patients.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/apr/28/cancer-surgeon-convicted-of-performing-needless-breast-surgery

Those poor bloody women.

This is horrible, a nightmare. Bad enough thinking they had cancer, but to lose their breasts because he makes money from it is well, appalling.

A Consultant women trusted, what a bastard!

He should get life and the women compensated by him, but that won't happen. Compensation won't grow their breasts back and he won't get a long sentence either. He's rich, bet its 5-7 years.

make him ride the "iron horse"

I'm a bit confused. It says that Paterson gave women incomplete mastectomies and the cancer then spread, but then it seems he was doing mastectomies which weren't necessary?

He has been compared to Harold Shipman in the local news, difference being he mutilated possibly more than a thousand women, whereas Shipman killed them.
Like Shipman, Paterson has been described as a charismatic and caring doctor that patients and families trusted implicitly.

It won't give women much confidence in going to see surgeons about breast lumps for fear of being misdiagnosed .

Vicar of Dibley (vod) wrote:It won't give women much confidence in going to see surgeons about breast lumps for fear of being misdiagnosed .

That would be sad if that was the case.

This was one surgeon out of thousands.

It would be far worse to tarnish all of them off this one idiot.

Thorin wrote:

Vicar of Dibley (vod) wrote:It won't give women much confidence in going to see surgeons about breast lumps for fear of being misdiagnosed .

That would be sad if that was the case.

This was one surgeon out of thousands.

It would be far worse to tarnish all of them off this one idiot.

I do agree . My mum has got to pay £89 each for two doctors to confirm my dad died from his illnesses because of Harold Shipman . Because of his crimes everyone suffers too when a loved one dies now .

Vicar of Dibley (vod) wrote:

Thorin wrote:


That would be sad if that was the case.

This was one surgeon out of thousands.

It would be far worse to tarnish all of them off this one idiot.

I do agree . My mum has got to pay £89 each for two doctors to confirm my dad died from his illnesses because of Harold Shipman . Because of his crimes everyone suffers too when a loved one dies now .

But this is the saddest part Dibs

We only know the names of criminal doctors like war criminals like Josef Mengele.

We never honour the many surgeons who daily save countless lives.

There is something very wrong in that and how in fact we should thank and honour the many surgeons who do save lives.

Thorin wrote:

Vicar of Dibley (vod) wrote:

I do agree . My mum has got to pay £89 each for two doctors to confirm my dad died from his illnesses because of Harold Shipman . Because of his crimes everyone suffers too when a loved one dies now .

But this is the saddest part Dibs

We only know the names of criminal doctors like war criminals like Josef Mengele.

We never honour the many surgeons who daily save countless lives.

There is something very wrong in that and how in fact we should thank and honour the many surgeons who do save lives.

very true didge .

Another medical blunder.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-4459082/Huge-overdose-kills-baby-hospital-jab-blunder.html

The suggestion is that Ian Paterson didn't just commit a series of blunders though, is it? I still don't understand it. He's accused of under-operating one minute, and then over-operating the next.

Raggamuffin wrote:The suggestion is that Ian Paterson didn't just commit a series of blunders though, is it? I still don't understand it. He's accused of under-operating one minute, and then over-operating the next.

I think he just wanted to operate and play the Big I Am. On the whole, only my own experience naturally, I've found consultants to be an arrogant, pompous lot. I've suffered for several years from a torn meniscus in my left knee. When it first happened, I went along to a specialist who poked my knee and tutted a lot and told me I had arthritis and I had to live with it. I told him I didn't think it was arthritis and he gave me a withering look and told me not to question his 'expertise'. I knew it wasn't arthritis. So I went back to my doctor and demanded a second opinion. The next specialist insisted on a scan, and found nothing. So I demanded an MRI. I got one and they found the torn meniscus. If I hadn't pushed and stuck with my instincts, I would never have been diagnosed. Basically, I knew more about my body than the so called fucking specialist.

HoratioTarr wrote:

Raggamuffin wrote:The suggestion is that Ian Paterson didn't just commit a series of blunders though, is it? I still don't understand it. He's accused of under-operating one minute, and then over-operating the next.

I think he just wanted to operate and play the Big I Am.   On the whole, only my own experience naturally, I've found consultants to be an arrogant, pompous lot.   I've suffered for several years from a  torn meniscus in my left knee.  When it first happened, I went along to a specialist who poked my knee and tutted a lot and told me I had arthritis and I had to live with it.  I told him I didn't think it was arthritis and he gave me a withering look and told me not to question his 'expertise'.    I knew it wasn't arthritis.   So I went back to my doctor and demanded a second opinion.   The next specialist insisted on a scan, and found nothing. So I demanded an MRI.  I got one and they found the torn meniscus.  If I hadn't pushed and stuck with my instincts, I would never have been diagnosed.  Basically, I knew more about my body than the so called fucking specialist.  

So did he really think that these women needed an operation? I thought the suggestion was that he was doing all this on purpose - to earn more money or something.

Maybe there was some kind of Munchhausen issue or he might have been genuine. If he was doing incomplete operations and then some women died, he might have decided to err on the side of caution and operate when he wasn't sure if they had cancer or not?

As for misdiagnosis in general, that happens a lot, and it's not necessarily the result of ignorance or arrogance. Doctors can only go on symptoms and/or test results, but there are issues that can cloud the diagnosis. I know this as I've had a variety of opinions as what I have, and in the end I told the consultant what I thought it was.

But It does go to prove that some doctors will indeed, put people's lives at risk.

There is an ongoing debate, has been for years, about the exaggeration within the prostate cancer field. Lots of articles to suggest that many men have prostatectomies, unnecessarily. Some surgeons get very power and money-hungry.

eddie wrote:But It does go to prove that some doctors will indeed, put people's lives at risk.

There is an ongoing debate, has been for years, about the exaggeration within the prostate cancer field. Lots of articles to suggest that many men have prostatectomies, unnecessarily.  Some surgeons get very power and money-hungry.

Really?

Is this more alternative health/therap sites that continually attack the medical industry?

Erm no didge. These are cancer scientists.
Go and look.

eddie wrote:Erm no didge. These are cancer scientists.
Go and look.

Are they, lets see them then?

There are loads and a recent paper which shocked even surgeons - can't find that but here is what the debate is about.

http://www.economist.com/news/books-and-arts/21598622-furious-debate-over-screening-prostate-cancer-help-or-harm

eddie wrote:There are loads and a recent paper which shocked even surgeons - can't find that but here is what the debate is about.

http://www.economist.com/news/books-and-arts/21598622-furious-debate-over-screening-prostate-cancer-help-or-harm

Your link does not allow me to read the article and the book is not written by a scientist or surgeon

http://vitalsigns.bangordailynews.com/2015/06/22/home/is-prostate-cancer-screening-worth-the-risk-the-heated-medical-debate-behind-kings-announcement/

I have to tell you I am personally going through this with someone and the amount of contradiction even among the consultants is extraordinary! And I've talked to about 20 men at a self-hero group a couple of weeks ago and the stories were amazingly full of contradictng info and personal tales of greedy surgeons.

Unless you're in this - you have no idea.

eddie wrote:http://vitalsigns.bangordailynews.com/2015/06/22/home/is-prostate-cancer-screening-worth-the-risk-the-heated-medical-debate-behind-kings-announcement/

I have to tell you I am personally going through this with someone and the amount of contradiction even among the consultants is extraordinary! And I've talked to about 20 men at a self-hero group a couple of weeks ago and the stories were amazingly full of contradictng info and personal tales of greedy surgeons.

Unless you're in this - you have no idea.

Well as my brother died of prostrate and my father had Prostrate cancer and the fact it can be hereditary. Don't you think I might have some idea on Prostrate cancer?

So to say I have no idea is fucking insulting eddie

I did say "unless you're in this" didn't I?

And this particular cancer has moved on since even five years ago. Specialists are divided in how to treat it when it's contained within the prostate.

eddie wrote:I did say "unless you're in this" didn't I?

And this particular cancer has moved on since even five years ago. Specialists are divided in how  to treat it when it's contained within the prostate.

Which is still insulting

They are not divided in the UK at all

http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/prostate-cancer/getting-diagnosed/screening

I think it's not a bad thing if doctors are divided. They need to discuss their ideas with each other. The trouble with things like cancer is that if they don't do enough and the patient dies, they're criticised, and if they do too much and the patient wasn't at risk in the first place, they're also criticised.

Apparently, it's not always certain if someone has cancer or not - biopsies can be ambiguous.

Raggamuffin wrote:As for misdiagnosis in general, that happens a lot, and it's not necessarily the result of ignorance or arrogance. Doctors can only go on symptoms and/or test results, but there are issues that can cloud the diagnosis. I know this as I've had a variety of opinions as what I have, and in the end I told the consultant what I thought it was.

They are the 'experts' and the specialist in my case should have heeded my pain and disability caused by the cartilage damage and sent me for a scan. Instead he poked my knee a few times and diagnosed arthritis. He could barely speak English either. These people get paid a lot to do what they do, and train for years, so yes, I expect them to take the time to turn over every stone and find out what's wrong. If they can't do that, who can? Did I feel let down? Yes very, because it took nearly 3 months of agony for me to get the correct diagnosis.

HoratioTarr wrote:

Raggamuffin wrote:As for misdiagnosis in general, that happens a lot, and it's not necessarily the result of ignorance or arrogance. Doctors can only go on symptoms and/or test results, but there are issues that can cloud the diagnosis. I know this as I've had a variety of opinions as what I have, and in the end I told the consultant what I thought it was.

They are the 'experts' and the specialist in my case should have heeded my pain and disability caused by the cartilage damage and sent me for a scan.  Instead he poked my knee a few times and diagnosed arthritis.  He could barely speak English either.   These people get paid a lot to do what they do, and train for years, so yes, I expect them to take the time to turn over every stone and find out what's wrong.   If they can't do that, who can?  Did I feel let down?  Yes very, because it took nearly 3 months of agony for me to get the correct diagnosis.

They are not mind readers and have to best judge on what they try to understand from the patient horatio.
Sometimes it does need a second opinion as well. 

What I will not abide with as how people so easily dish the medical profession when daily they go all out to make people better.

Your one situation should never be the standard of the medical profession.

Now I am sorry it took time to get to the heart of your medical problem, but how about taking a second out here to the many conditions that have little ability to treat at the moment. Just think about how actually your condition is treatable Horatio and that it is being treated

Its like I said before, Josef Mengele  should not be the standard all doctors should be based upon

HoratioTarr wrote:

Raggamuffin wrote:As for misdiagnosis in general, that happens a lot, and it's not necessarily the result of ignorance or arrogance. Doctors can only go on symptoms and/or test results, but there are issues that can cloud the diagnosis. I know this as I've had a variety of opinions as what I have, and in the end I told the consultant what I thought it was.

They are the 'experts' and the specialist in my case should have heeded my pain and disability caused by the cartilage damage and sent me for a scan.  Instead he poked my knee a few times and diagnosed arthritis.  He could barely speak English either.   These people get paid a lot to do what they do, and train for years, so yes, I expect them to take the time to turn over every stone and find out what's wrong.   If they can't do that, who can?  Did I feel let down?  Yes very, because it took nearly 3 months of agony for me to get the correct diagnosis.

One thing many people do not know
Most doctors spend the majority of their retirement facing court cases.
Whether that be from negligence to simple not being sympathetic enough to a person dying.
Now of course negligence should be always be an investigation, but how a doctor is meant to feel when someone dies? They have to deal with death daily and sadly they face court cases daily off this, from blood sucking lawyers.