A Florida doctor accused of removing a woman's kidney instead of her gallbladder has been allowed to retain his medical license despite also being 'involved' in three other patient deaths.
Dr Gregg Shore, from Sebring, FL, has been accused of 'negligence' and performing 'medically unnecessary' surgery over a nine month period in which three of his patients died.
A complaint filed by the state's Department of Health details the incidents between August 2020 and May 2021.
The first relates to the death of a man who presented with a diseased gallbladder and was noted to be septic.
During surgery to remove the organ on August 12 2020, Shore spotted bleeding near the liver and placed a drain.
Dr Gregg Shore, 61, still retains his medical license in Florida despite complaints of medical negligence by the state's health board
But post-surgery the patient was observed to have 'profuse amounts of blood coming from the drain'. His pulse weakened and he eventually died.
Officials said Shore, 61, should have stopped the bleeding before finishing the surgery and referred him sooner due to the severity of his condition.
A similar complaint relates to the death of a 35-year-old woman who underwent surgery for a diseased gallbladder on September 17 2020.
The complaint claims Shore encountered difficulty removing the organ and inflicted a tear on the patient's liver, which resulted in rapid blood loss.
Despite the patient receiving blood transfusions, she died just hours later. State officials say Shore should have brought her back into theatre to ascertain the source of the bleed and enlisted the help of a vascular surgeon, both of which he allegedly failed to do.
Shore was embroiled in legal proceedings over the incident and paid out $250,000 of his own money to settle the case, according to the Miami Herald.
In a comment to the outlet about the allegations he said: 'Who are you? What gives you the authority to email me without my approval?
The third patient died on December 8 2020 following surgery for a hernia.
During an initial operation three days prior, Shore perforated the patient's small intestine whilst trying to place a trocar, a medical device which helps surgeons insert cannulas, according to the complaint.
Shore was granted his medical license in Florida in 2004 and is cleared to continue practicing until at least 2025 despite complaints about malpractice including that he removed a woman's kidney instead of her gallbladder
Florida's Department of Health (pictured above) filed complaints about Shore last year relating to his practice over nine months from May 2020
It states he was trying to fix the hernia using a mesh implant, but abandoned this due to fear of infection as the patient's abdomen was 'markedly distended'.
The patient was later rushed back to surgery to repair the damage, but Shore allegedly failed to fix the hernia.
Medical chiefs claim he 'fell below the minimum standard of care' towards his patient and should never have attempted to use a trocar or mesh to try and deal with the hernia.
Shore was also accused of performing another 'medically unnecessary' surgery after he removed a woman's kidney instead of her gallbladder.
The surgery on May 17 2021 allegedly saw him incorrectly remove the organ, with the mistake only caught by a pathology report after the operation.
The final complaint relates to Shore allegedly failing to notice a patient already had a mediport installed for use with dialysis.
Health regulators said he performed another 'medically unnecessary' surgery on April 8 2021 to install one on the right of the patient's body, before realizing he already had one implanted on the left.
According to the state's medical board Shore's license currently remains listed as 'Active/Clear' and is not due to expire until January 2025.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pa3IpbCmmZmhe6S7ja6iaKaVrMBwrdGtoJyklWJ%2Bc4GVa2txb197ubC%2ByJ2YZpyfmMGwvoyAqZ6fl2KgqbvRnmSbp6SYtaawjKysq5%2BVp8ZuvMCtoJ6mpGKxpq3ToapnoKSiuQ%3D%3D