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Doctor sued for 'branding' patient's uterus
Dr. Red Alinsod is being sued for engraving his patient's name on her uterus.
A California gynecologist is being sued for branding a patient's name on her uterus using an "electrocautery device."
Dr. Red Alinsod removed Ingrid Paulicivic's uterus during an operation at his Orange County office in 2006, according to the complaint posted on The Smoking Gun's website. The Laguna Beach doctor carved "Ingrid" on the organ, according to the site, because he "did not want to get it confused with others."
Alinsod told the site that labeling of body parts in that manner is not typical. But, he said, he "felt comfortable putting her name on the uterus" since the 47-year-old hairdresser was a "good friend."
Paulicivic's attorney, Devan Mullins, told CNN.com that his client did not know her physician before consulting him for the operation. Paulicivic and her husband learned of the branding during a follow-up visit, the lawyer said.
During that visit, Paulicivic complained to Alinsod about burns to her leg that she suffered during the operation, Mullins told CNN.com. The doctor was looking at images that were taken during the operation, and the couple asked for copies.
"Alinsod hesitated to give them the photos," the attorney said, sparking the couple's suspicion that something was wrong. The doctor told the couple that he didn't know how to copy the images, so the husband, who is a photographer, showed Alinsod how to move the images to a memory card, and the couple took them, Mullins said.
Later in the husband's office, the couple looked at the photos and were shocked to see "Ingrid" spelled out in inch-high letters on her uterus.
"They reacted like anyone would react - 'Oh my God, I cannot believe this happened,' " the lawyer said.
The couple hired Mullins, who tried for 90 days to notify Alinsod of an impending complaint, but the doctor did not react. "That's what's been odd - that we've gotten no response from him whatsoever," Mullins said.
CNN.com spoke with Alinsod's office manager Tuesday, who said that the physician was seeing patients and that he would not comment on the litigation.
According to Alinsod's website, he formerly headed gynecologic services at George Air Force Base in California and Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. He was affectionately called a "Combat Gynecologist" by his colleagues, it says.
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It's medical waste...GET OVER IT!!! Does everyone this way about a dirty diaper too!!! It's the same thing!!!
On another note but regarding hysterectemy...Is there anyway to have baby after having your uterus removed such as a uterine transplant or artificial transplant? Email me at wildroot21@yahoo.com if anyone knows of any research or doctors who could help on this subject.
Really !!! Who cares?
Did it Moo? Perhaps he can make some uterus jerky.
It's a convenient way to identify tissue. What's the big deal? These people must have been hunting for someone to sue.
What a petty law suit. I could understand if he branded an organ that was still inside of her. Comeon its not like he kept the organ and put it on his desk or somthing. Branding the organ is not the smartest thing to do but its not worth the effort to sue him over it. Im not sure there is even a prescident for it.
What is the big deal? Esp if the doc did it after removing it.
How can some of you treat a hysterectomy as garbage or waste? A uterus is not an ingrown toenail! That's probably why she is suing. It would devastate me to lose an organ that is unique to my female anatomy, just as it would devastate me to receive a mastectomy. I think he should practice some respect toward women, especially since this is not a common practice. It leads me to think what else do they do to female body parts that need to be removed, not because we want to "get rid of" them like moldy bread, but because there is a life threatening disease or illness that makes it necessary to either remove it or lose my life. How would he feel if a doctor carved up his testicle after he had to have it removed?
It's going to be incinerated. WHO F||CK|NG CARES????
Oh good grief. Do you go to counseling when you have a tooth pulled? To say goodbye to your beloved body part?
I sometimes label a nice steak so I can ID it as it leaves. It can be tricky, not chewing that one part but the sentimental value is priceless.
If hs testical where cancerous he probably wouldn't care that they where taken out. And once the path has a slice of them,they get wisked away and properly disposed of. Now if they showed up in the hospital cafe, that would be another matter.
I would just like to say to you that hysterectomy's are in fact very common. I work on a surgical floor of a hospital and we see about 10 hysterectomy's a week. You just need to get over yourself and trying to make it look like women are superior. And if still has breast and a VA\GA\NIA she still is a women with ot without a uterus.
If I had an organ that needed to be removed (b/c it's diseased), they probably couldn't get it out fast enough to please me. Be gone, I say. Some women have an obsessive attachment to their baby-making organs, and if you're post-menopausal or not interested in bearing children, I see no reason for grieving the uterus. It was medical waste.
Maybe he put a wig on the uterus and went out on pretend "dates" with it. "Oh Ingrid, you're simply ravishing."
my cheeks hurt from laughing....LMAO...THANKS!!!
lols
too funny noble
I think a lawsuit is overdoing it. I can't say I'd care as long as the stated objectives of the procedure were accomplished. Its actually kind of cool....if I ever have this surgery I'm going to get my name on mine too. In rhinestones if available.
Plead insanity, a temporary one. There's no defense here (in branding the uterus).
On those burns, that needs some explanation.
How on earth did this injure her? It was removed, it was trash. The "leg burns" and the tattoo were two separate things; the uterus had already been removed! He needs to counter-sue.
When a uterus is removed, it's submitted to Pathology where it's examined expertly both gross (naked eye) and microscopically (using microscope), Of course, it's labeled very very carefully to make sure that this uterus and the findings belongs to this patient. Did he brand this uterus to make sure that it wouldn't be confused with another patient's uterus ? This is the only defense I can see for him. Once that uterus is group with other uteri, it's impossible to tell which is which. Did he do this branding as a joke ? If so, he needs therapy even though he did not harm this patient with this branding.
YEA! I get to buy a new house!!!!
Isn't the litigation lottery swell!!!!
It's the American dream to sue to get a wad of cash...........
once removed, it doesn't belong to her, anymore.... I've had a doc refuse to give me my wisdom teeth back.
Good point!
It's California. 'nuff said.