Decision Report 202209309

Summary

C complained on behalf of their child (A) about the care and treatment A received prior to their surgery. They complained that some procedures had been carried out during the surgery without parental consent. They also said that A had not been examined prior to the surgery and that they had been left with unnecessary scarring. The board stated that written consent had been provided on the day of the surgery and the clinical notes recorded the procedures to be carried out and the risks of surgery had been explained at that time. The board also stated that A had been examined. However, they apologised if the verbal discussion prior to the operation had not prepared C for the outcome and also apologised if some of the scarring following the surgery was unsightly.

We took independent advice from a consultant paediatric urologist (specialist in children's urinary and genital problems). We found that the evidence suggested that the signed consent form had been read by C prior to the surgery and that no unnecessary procedures had been carried out. While there were no records to prove or disprove that A had been examined on the day of the surgery on balance we considered it was likely that A had been examined preoperatively. Although ideally it should have been explained to C during the consent process that there was a possibility that redistribution of the skin could be required during the operation, we found that it was not unreasonable that this was not mentioned. We also found that the care and treatment A had received on the day of the surgery was reasonable and that there was no evidence that the surgery carried out was inappropriate or excessive. Therefore, we did not uphold C’s complaints.