Folks, this is one of those stories that’ll leave you shaking your head in disbelief.
In what can only be described as a catastrophic and tragic case of medical malpractice, 70-year-old William “Bill” Bryan died after a surgeon at Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast Hospital in Florida mistakenly removed his liver instead of his spleen.
Let that sink in for a moment—a surgeon confused two entirely different organs, and the result was immediate, fatal blood loss. Now, civil and potentially criminal charges are on the table as the family seeks justice for this unthinkable error.
Bill and his wife Beverly were enjoying their time at their condo in Destin, Florida when Bill started having pain in his left side. Concerned, they went to Ascension Sacred Heart, where doctors suspected an issue with his spleen.
But here’s where it gets infuriating. The family’s attorney, Joe Zarzaur, says the hospital’s chief medical officer, Dr. Christopher Bacani, and the surgeon, Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky, convinced the Bryans not to return home to Alabama for the surgery despite their reluctance. The doctors warned that moving Bill could cause his spleen to rupture and urged them to proceed with the surgery in Florida.
Fast forward to the surgery on August 21, 2024. Dr. Shaknovsky was supposed to perform a laparoscopic splenectomy, but instead, he removed Bill’s liver, slicing through major blood vessels and causing fatal blood loss.
Even worse, it took a pathologist examining the tissue to realize the mistake—the liver was misidentified as a spleen. After the surgery, Shaknovsky even told Beverly that the “spleen” was so diseased it had “migrated” across Bill’s body. As it turns out, the spleen was still in place, and the original issue was a small ruptured cyst.
Alabama man dies in Destin hospital after surgeon removes wrong organ. https://t.co/CQyXfG2Y1r Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky told the victim’s widow that the “spleen” was so diseased that it was four times bigger than usual and had “migrated” to the other side of her husband’s body. DEI. pic.twitter.com/j7SdziwCEh
— Gloria (@Swanhwid) September 4, 2024
Beverly, herself a nurse, is understandably devastated. Just days before their wedding anniversary, she lost her husband in a way that was brutal, avoidable, and utterly senseless. She had initially wanted to take Bill back home for treatment, but they were persuaded to stay in Florida. The thought that her husband might still be alive had they returned to their trusted doctors in Alabama is haunting.
To add insult to injury, this isn’t the first time Dr. Shaknovsky has been involved in a surgical blunder. In 2023, he mistakenly removed part of a patient’s pancreas during a different surgery, but that case was quietly settled. Despite this history, he was still performing surgeries at the same hospital.
This is a sentinel event and needs IMMEDIATE suspension of Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky’s privileges and should be reported to Joint Commission.
In all of my years in the OR, I have never seen anything so egregious.
The entire OR staff need to be investigated pic.twitter.com/Z0iHl4KoRb
— Jess Clarke (@JessClarke007) September 2, 2024
Now, Beverly Bryan and her family are left to seek justice, hoping to prevent this tragedy from happening to anyone else. While they wait through the required legal “pre-suit period” in Florida, the Walton County Sheriff’s Office is also investigating the case for potential criminal negligence. It’s unclear whether charges will be filed, but with a case this egregious, you have to wonder how something like this could happen in the first place.
“Dr” Thomas Shaknovsky killed a patient when he removed their liver instead of their spleen. He told the family it was diseased, 4x the size of a normal spleen and had migrated to the other side of his body….this is his 2nd surgical error!!! How does one remove an entire LIVER… https://t.co/RECyW6DBkh
— missesmysteries (@missesmysteries) September 4, 2024
Beverly’s words sum it up: “My husband died while helpless on the operating room table… I don’t want anyone else to die due to his incompetence at a hospital that should have known or knew he had previously made drastic, life-altering surgical mistakes.” The loss of Bill Bryan is a tragedy, but this fight for justice isn’t over.
