Man nearly undergoes wrong lung surgery

A man seeking treatment for a perforated eardrum in East Kilbride, Scotland, wound up in the wrong hospital being prepped for lung surgery.

John Jeffrey at first thought a nurse at Hairmyres Hospital was shaving his chest to monitor his vital signs during his ear operation scheduled Friday, the Daily Record reported.

But when he overheard the nurse say something about a lung operation, Jeffery said spoke up right away. "When I told the nurse and anesthetist that I was in for an ear operation, they looked shocked and called the surgeon," Jeffrey said. "He said they don't even do ear operations at that hospital."

Jeffery, 40, had been on a waiting list to have a collapsed lung repaired at Hairmyres. He had that surgery at Glasgow Royal Infirmary but remained on Hairmyres' waiting list, which created the confusion, a spokeswoman said.

"I can laugh about it now, but that's because I spoke out in time," he said, adding now he has to wait to have his eardrum surgery rescheduled. Article here.