Board chairman Irwin Zeitzler later said that complications in neurosurgery were more common than most think. Dubbed "Dr. Death," the case gained national attention, revealing [10][7], Duntsch completed his residency having participated in fewer than 100 surgeries. "[20][4] Under heavy lobbying from Kirby and Henderson, the Texas Medical Board suspended Duntsch's license on June 26, 2013. Had Duntsch been fired, Baylor Plano would have been required to report him to the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB), which is intended to flag problematic physicians. July 19, 2021. Henderson sent Duntsch's picture to the University of Tennessee to determine whether he actually had a degree from that institution and received confirmation that Duntsch, in fact, did. [36][11][9] For the same reason, prosecutors opted to try Duntsch for Efurd's maiming first. The series peers into the torturous crimes of . Christopher Duntsch was nicknamed Dr. Death due to the injuries he caused his patients. In a long running series of complaints, a Texas doctor has been found guilty of a felony in one medical malpractice case. February 21, 2017 / 5:45 AM / CBS News. "Something was wrong," Dr. Rimlawi said, "whether it be impairment from drugs, alcohol, mental illness, or a combination of all three." Dr. Death: Disgraced surgeon at center of podcast, show has CSU roots The bad doctor: A health care worker doing harm - Plano Magazine He had a bedroom upstairs in their Plano house. The series follows two other surgeons, along with . Their fling was confined to his office at Baylor Plano, and Morgan said in her deposition that he frequently drank vodka and did medical research for hours. Christopher Duntsch a.k.a. The indictments were made four months before the statute of limitations ran out. An investigator by trade and nature, Passmore started digging into Dr. Christopher Duntsch. ", "Assault trial begins for Dallas surgeon who once wrote of becoming 'cold blooded killer', "The State of Texas vs. Christopher Daniel Dunstch", "Life Sentence Upheld on Appeal For Christopher Duntsch, aka Dr. Death", "What you need to know about 'Dr. Her husband could not hold himself up; he had no support of his own and could barely speak. In his deposition, Summers admitted he made up the pre-surgery cocaine binge because he felt Duntsch had abandoned him, as both his doctor and his friend. The True Story Of Christopher Duntsch, The Killer Surgeon Known As Dr. [6], Christopher Duntsch was born in Montana and spent most of his youth in Memphis, Tennessee. Trusty was never told she was participating in an infomercial and believed Duntsch had been selected as the top neurosurgeon in Dallas and was participating in a video about the award. He might have been fired from the Institute but was still a surgeon at Baylor Plano. He called Duntsch's fellowship supervisor in Memphis and the supervisor of Duntsch's residency; it was then that he learned about the incident that led him to be referred to the impaired physician program. Leaving on April 20, 2012, with a lawyer-negotiated letter saying, "All areas of concern with regard to Christopher D. Duntsch have been closed. [7] He lasted for less than a week before administrators pulled his privileges after the death of a patient, Floella Brown, and the maiming of another, Mary Efurd. He will not be eligible for parole until 2045, when he will be 74-years-old. After a fall in her kitchen, Martin experienced chronic back pain and sought out surgery to alleviate it. My experience with this doctor has been great. ", "Greg Abbott Enters Fray in Lawsuits Involving "Sociopath" Doctor", "Abbott sides with Baylor hospital in neurosurgeon lawsuit", "Who Are Robert Henderson And Randall Kirby, The Surgeons Who Tried To Stop 'Dr. Christopher Daniel Duntsch (born April 3, 1971)[1] is a former American neurosurgeon who has been nicknamed Dr. D. and Dr. Death[2] for gross malpractice resulting in the maiming of several patients' spines and two deaths while working at hospitals in the DallasFort Worth metroplex. Where is Christopher Duntsch AKA Dr. Death now? - The US Sun After the operation, Brown woke up and seemed fine, but early the following day; she lost consciousness. [26][4], After leaving Dallas Medical Center, Duntsch received privileges at South Hampton Community Hospital in Dallas and also took a job at an outpatient clinic named Legacy Surgery Center (now Frisco Ambulatory Surgery Center) in Frisco. Summers remained quadriplegic for the rest of his life. Death.. and Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee Health Center. Duntsch is a serial maimer and killer. After 13 days of trial, the jury needed only four hours to convict him for the maiming of Efurd, and on February 20, 2017, he was sentenced to life in prison. 0:57. For the last three days, jurors listened to testimony in the . Thankfully, this ended up being Dr. Christopher Duntsch's last operation. [3], Duntsch was accused of injuring 33 out of 38 patients in less than two years before his license was revoked by the Texas Medical Board. He is very caring and took the time to help me understand my pain issues. However, he sewed up Glidewell with the sponge still in place despite others in the operating room warning him about it. No one came out and spoke with Kellie Martin's family or informed them of her condition during this time. 'Dr. Death' Surgeon Killed or Maimed 33 of His Patients - Peoplemag They argued that Duntsch was motivated to continue operating because the salary of a neurosurgeon would solve his vast financial issues. By this time, Jerry Summers, his childhood friend, had moved from Tennessee to live with Duntsch. Ellis Unit outside of Huntsville, Texas. However, on January 6, 2012, a week after the surgery, Dr. Duntsch performed another operation on Passmore. Duntsch, who had been listed as the founder, president & chief science officer, was being sued by the former chief operating officer and was dismissed from his roles and seat on the board. Duntsch earned his undergraduate degree in 1995 and enrolled at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. Many readers may recognize the name Christopher Duntsch, a doctor who allegedly was negligent in his practice for years before finally being stripped of his medical license. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott filed a motion to intervene in the suits to defend Baylor Plano, citing the Texas legislature's 2003 statute that placed a medical malpractice cap of $250,000, and removed the term "gross negligence" from the definition of legal malice. [40][41] On May 8, 2019, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals refused Duntschs petition for discretionary review. One screw was jabbed directly into her spinal canal and had skewered the nerves that control one leg and the bladder. Christopher Duntsch was just a regular guy who became Dr. Death after he decided to be a neurosurgeon. As a result, Summers lost almost 1,200 mL of blood. When other doctors discovered the sponge, Duntsch refused to return to help remove it. No diagnostic imaging studies were ordered, and no reasonable explanation was offered for his condition. It was completely unnecessary, didn't relieve her pain, and only set her up for another needed surgery. The story of Dr. Death, Christopher Duntsch, feels like something out of a movie or book. 11:15 PM on Mar 1, 2014 CST. He is not eligible for parole until 2045, when he will be 74 years old. He is a graduate of Evangelical Christian School in the Cordova suburb of Memphis, where he starred in football.[7]. Duntsch had his surgical rights temporarily suspended after his botched surgery on Summers and his first patient back was 55-year-old Kellie Martin. Promising Beginnings. Dr. Plano's 'Doctor Death': The Christopher Duntsch case - YouTube Once, he stopped by to pick up some paperwork. In addition, a ligament in his leg was severed, and a screw was stripped and lodged into a nerve bundle. She witnessed Duntsch put on his lab coat and make his rounds the following morning as if nothing had happened. B. Ellis Unit outside Huntsville. Who Were The Victims Of Dr. Christopher Duntsch? | True Crime Buzz Christopher Duntsch was a neurosurgeon who radiated confidence. You'd like to think . [7][28][16], Kirby wrote a detailed complaint to the Texas Medical Board, calling Duntsch a "sociopath" who was "a clear and present danger to the citizens of Texas. Muse spiraled into opioid addiction that cost him his wife and his job. Even if a plaintiff wins the maximum award, after you pay your lawyer and your experts and go through, potentially, years of trial, not much is left. [9] Texas Medical Board Revocation Order. Jurors convicted Duntsch Tuesday of injury to an elderly person in the botched July 2012 surgery that put Mary Efurd in a wheelchair. Duntsch was suspected of having used cocaine the night before the operation. ", "Doctor Guilty of Felony Medical Malpractice", "Disciplinary actions against doctors have plunged during the pandemic, but that doesn't mean they are behaving", "An Update on Dr. Death Victim Philip Mayfield", "Jeff Glidewell Today: Where Is Dr. Death's Last Patient Now? Over the course of 18-months, the nefarious ex-surgeon performed a spree of botched . I thought he was either really, really good, or hes just really, really arrogant and thought he was good, Hoyle said. He did his surgical residency at the University of Tennessee in Memphis, spending five years studying neurosurgery and a year studying general surgery. Kim Morgan Now: Where is Nurse and Christopher Duntsch's Ex-Assisstant [7], Henderson later recalled wondering if Duntsch was an impostor; he could not believe that a real surgeon would botch Efurd's surgery so badly. Christopher Duntsch: A Review of Clinicide - Walsh Medical Media Dr. Death is based on the podcast of the same name, produced by Wondery. Duntsch's trial has been called a precedent-setting case, as it's the first time that a physician has been convicted on criminal charges for actions in the course of their medical work and malpractice involving botched surgery. among the top 12 percent of medical school graduates in his class named to the elite Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. Kenneth Fennell, the first patient Duntsch operated on at Baylor Plano, was left with chronic pain after Duntsch operated on the wrong part of his back. Assistant district attorney Michelle Shughart, who led the prosecution of Duntsch, later recalled that Henderson and Kirby reached out to her demanding to testify against Duntsch; according to Shughart, doctors rarely testify against each other. He was left with only one vocal cord, permanent damage to his esophagus, and partial paralysis on his left side. Fennell is in constant pain, and it took several months of rehabilitation before he could begin to walk with a cane. Duntsch severed his vertebral nerve, his vocal cords, cut a hole in his esophagus, sliced through an artery, and mistook part of his neck muscle as a tumor. Randall Kirby wrote a detailed complaint to the Texas Medical Board, calling Duntsch a "sociopath" who was "a clear and present danger to the citizens of Texas." When he called Duntsch's office, he was told it would "go away." Duntsch focused on his research for a while but was recruited from Memphis to join the Minimally Invasive Spine Institute in North Dallas in the summer of 2011. He decided to turn to neurosurgery, which can be a lucrative field. This was the time when Dr. Christopher Duntsch started to turn into Dr. Death. "After building a flourishing neurosurgery practice, everything suddenly changes when patients entering Dr. Duntsch's operating room for complex but routine spinal surgeries start leaving permanently disabled or dead. Learn more. D MagazineChristopher Duntsch a.k.a. To avoid the costs of fighting and possibly losing a wrongful termination suit, hospital officials reached a deal with Duntsch's lawyers in which Duntsch was allowed to resign in return for Baylor Plano issuing a letter stating that there were no issues with him. But when he awoke and was experiencing extreme pain, Dr. Duntsch said that surgery had been a success and there had been no complications. Evil Lives Here: Shadows Of Death is investigating the numerous crimes of former neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch, who was nicknamed Dr. Death after causing pain, suffering, and even death to multiple patients over the course of two years. Christopher Duntsch Early Life Story, Family Background and Education. Anatomy of a Tragedy: The Story Behind 'Sociopath Surgeon' Christopher The appalling actions of the rogue surgeon and their repercussions on his unsuspecting patients were . When Henderson saw the imaging from Duntsch's surgery, he was certain that there would be legal action, and had the salvage surgery recorded. He had complex regional pain syndrome, a rare type of chronic pain that caused his skin to blister and peel off. Wendy Young knew her ex-boyfriend Christopher Duntsch's medical career was unraveling, but she wasn't prepared for what she said was his bizarre behavior that coincided with his fall from grace as a surgeon.. "[45], Wondery Media launched a ten-episode podcast series named Dr. Death, focusing on Duntsch. However, Mayfield still woke up with paralysis on occasion. To stop the bleeding, he packed the space with so much anticoagulant foam that it constricted Summers' spine. The hospital hired him and granted him temporary surgical privileges until his reference checks were completed. Victim statements reveal more gruesome details of botched surgeries - WFAA He performed only one surgery with the Minimally Invasive Spine Institute. It was Duntsch, babbling about his family being in danger. He stalled at first, telling administrators he got lost on the way to the lab. Dallas Magazine states that Duntsch became key in supplying samples to scientists for research. [4] Duntsch also claimed to have graduated magna cum laude from St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital with a doctorate in microbiology a program that the hospital did not offer at the time he allegedly attended. Podcast de Dr Death: La verdadera historia de Christopher Duntsch que "[3] A neurosurgery expert for Duntsch's defense team himself said, "The conditions which created Dr.Duntsch still exist, thereby making it possible for another to come along. While they were in the lab working, Duntsch went to work raising money for a company he called DiscGenics. By the end of the week, administrators told Duntsch he would no longer be operating at Dallas Medical Center. During this time, he ran two successful labs and raised millions of dollars in grant funding. The operation should have taken less than ninety minutes; it ultimately lasted four and a half hours. The case highlights the risks of allowing a troubled physician to move to another hospital . Dr. Death: The Long & Bloody Road to Justice for Dallas' Deadly Doctor Barry Morguloff, the owner of a pool service company, was left with bone fragments in his spinal canal after Duntsch tried to pull a damaged, Jerry Summers, a longtime friend of Duntsch's, came to Plano to have, Kellie Martin was undergoing a routine back operation when Duntsch cut through her spinal cord and severed an artery. Christopher Duntsch was born in Montana on April 3, 1971. It's hard to find a lawyer willing to jump through these hoops no matter how negligent the doctor was, because Texas limits non-economic damages in most cases to $250,000 per doctor. Henderson then cleaned out bone fragments and discovered that one of Efurd's nerve roots was gone entirely. Following his blunders, Duntsch resigned from Baylor Plano in April 2012 before they could fire him. From 2011 to 2013, dozens of patients in the Dallas area woke up after their surgeries with horrible pain, numbness and, paralysis. She was left with just one vocal cord. Did Christopher Duntsch Have Any Successful Surgeries? Dr. Christopher Duntsch's patients ended up maimed and dead, but the real tragedy is that the Texas Medical Board couldn't stop him. Kissinger also noticed that Duntsch had pinpoint pupils and hardly seemed to blink. His CV also conveyed he earned a Ph.D. in microbiology from St. Jude Children's Research Hospitals, graduating summa cum laude. [9][24][19][7] After several days, Kirby was brought in to repair the damage and later described what he found after opening Glidewell back up as the work of a "crazed maniac". As part of their investigation, prosecutors obtained a December 2011 email written by Christopher Duntsch. Ghostbar, Dragonfly at Hotel Zaza. Dr. Death in surgery. [33][34] The indictments were made four months before the statute of limitations were to run out. In 2005, partway through the six-year program, he became the director of the tissue bank. When he began at MISI, Duntsch hired an assistant, Kimberly Morgan, and she started on August 29, 2011. Then check out the horrifying story of Simon Bramhall, a surgeon who admitted to burning his initials into patients livers. 'Hot TikTok doc' urges young people to get jabbed - warning of dangers of long Covid, Daughter, 39, guilty of stabbing mum to death before setting house on fire and dumping her dismembered body in river, Pregnant beautician loses baby after savage beating by monster husband who kidnapped her amid divorce row, Shocking moment man is crushed to death by an enraged elephant after crowd taunts herd of jumbos. During a deposition, Megan Krane recalled Duntsch eating a paper blotter of LSD and taking prescription painkillers on his birthday. Just weeks after permanently maiming Morguloff, Dr. Duntsch operated on his lifelong friend and roommate, Jerry Summers. [16][24] Henderson described Duntsch's surgery as an "assault", and concluded that Efurd would have been bedridden had the salvage surgery not been performed. He is currently appealing this sentence. Despite this refusal, Duntsch was allowed to finish his residency. They argued that Duntsch was motivated to continue operating because the lucrative salary of a neurosurgeon would solve his mounting financial problems. Dr Death, un nuevo programa que llegar a Peacock el jueves (15 de julio), se basa en la historia de la vida real de Christopher Duntsch, un ex neurocirujano que era, como dijo un famoso titular de ProPublica, "tan malo que era criminal".. Joshua Jackson interpreta a Duntsch, que ahora tiene 50 aos y cumple cadena perpetua despus de ser condenado en 2017 por mutilar a uno de sus . Jeff Cheney later learned that part of his spinal cord had been cut during the operation. Baylor Plano again ordered Duntsch to take a drug test. Who Is Christopher Duntsch, The Man Nicknamed 'Dr. Death' Who Injured In December 2012, Jacqueline Troy was left barely able to speak above a whisper after Duntsch cut her vocal cords and one of her arteries. He called Duntsch's fellowship supervisor in Memphis, as well as the supervisor of Duntsch's residency; it was then that he learned about the incident that led him to be referred to the impaired physician program. But soon his patients started to experience complications, and the system failed to protect them.