William Bryan Obituary, Death; – A physician in Northwest Florida faces allegations of excising the incorrect organ during a recent surgical procedure, which purportedly led to the demise of a man from Alabama.
William Bryan passed away on August 21, just two days shy of his 34th wedding anniversary, after his liver was removed in an operation that was meant to extract his spleen. He was 70 years old at the time of his death. His widow, Beverly, is now seeking accountability for this tragic incident.
“I am aware that I am not the only spouse who has lost their partner unexpectedly,” she stated. “However, the loss of my Bill was particularly unnecessary and cruel.” Beverly and Bill had traveled from Muscle Shoals, Alabama, to spend time at their condominium in Destin. While there, Bill began experiencing pain on his left side. “We visited Sacred Heart on the Emerald Coast, where he was admitted and placed under the care of Dr. [Thomas] Shaknovsky,” Beverly recounted.
Following a series of tests, she indicated that the medical team discovered a ruptured cyst that had caused bleeding around his spleen. She expressed her desire to return Bill to his healthcare providers in northern Alabama.
“I attempted to persuade Dr. Shaknovsky to allow me to take him home or to arrange for his transport,” she explained. “However, Dr. Shaknovsky insisted that Bill would be at risk of bleeding to death if he were moved.” On August 21, Bill underwent surgery intended to remove his spleen; however, by that evening, he had succumbed to his injuries.
“They took him from us while he was utterly defenseless on the operating table,” Beverly lamented. “They removed his liver instead of his spleen, which inevitably led to his bleeding to death on the operating table. Everyone understands that one cannot survive without their liver,” she emphasized. “It is akin to having one’s heart removed.”A report from Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast identifies Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky as the lead surgeon in this case.
Pensacola attorney Joe Zarzaur, representing the family, provided WEAR News with what is referred to as the “operative documentation” from the hospital, which outlines the surgical procedure and the events leading up to it. The document indicates that Bill Bryan was admitted to the hospital on August 18, where several diagnostic tests, including an MRI and a CT scan, were conducted.
