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Hamburg Regional Court: meeting room in the criminal justice building
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Marcus Brandt/dpa
After the death of an 18-year-old patient in a dental practice in Hamburg-Altona almost eight years ago, one of the two accused doctors admitted mistakes in the district court on Thursday. "I caused a tragedy," said the 67-year-old anesthesiologist at the start of the trial. "He died under my treatment." The public prosecutor's office accuses the anesthetist and a dentist of joint bodily harm resulting in death.
The dentist then reported the terrible events in a voice choked with tears. The 18-year-old came to her practice with his mother, said the 46-year-old. Although numerous teeth were broken and the patient was in great pain, he had not been to a doctor for a long time. Because of his great fear, she gave him options such as laughing gas or hypnosis, but he wanted general anesthesia, the defendant reported. "He wanted to sleep during the treatment, he didn't want to hear anything."
Died in hospital
She called in the anesthetist, whom she had met as an experienced doctor in previous encounters. He assured her that dental treatment lasting several hours under general anesthesia would not be a problem for such a young person. The appointment at the dentist's office was scheduled for May 27, 2016. “I was firmly convinced that I had fulfilled my duty of care,” emphasized the dentist.
The prosecution accuses the two doctors of not properly informing the 18-year-old about all the risks and the type of anesthesia monitoring. Because of the improper administration of anesthesia, cardiovascular failure occurred. This was misinterpreted by the anesthesiologist. The emergency services were therefore alerted too late. The 18-year-old died shortly afterwards in the hospital
(file number 602 Ks 2/23)
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wit/dpa