- 29 May 2019
- 4 min read
Hospital trust apologises after operation removes wrong fallopian tube
A patient has been left unable to have children without IVF treatment.

A healthcare worker has been left unable to have children naturally after a hospital removed the wrong fallopian tube during surgery.
Chelsie Thomas had her left fallopian tube removed despite “clear and unambiguous” test results showing an ectopic pregnancy in her right tube, lawyers acting for the 26-year-old said.
The clinical support worker, who is employed by the trust which runs Walsall Manor Hospital, is now calling for lessons to be learned to prevent a similar error happening in future.
She underwent surgery in March last year but was recalled to hospital when maternity staff raised concerns after reading medical notes.
A further scan found that the mother-of-one still had an ectopic pregnancy in her right fallopian tube and she had to undergo another operation, performed by a different surgeon, to remove the correct tube.
Like this article? Subscribe to The Nurses Weekly!
Following her ordeal, Ms Thomas instructed law firm Irwin Mitchell to investigate her care under Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust, which runs the hospital.
She said: “None of this seems real. I am heartbroken and just feel numb at what has happened and devastated at how I can no longer have children naturally.
“After I came round from my first operation I felt really ill. I was in so much pain, which continued throughout the day.
“The next day the doctor who carried out the surgery came to see me and at this point told me that the operation went really well and I was told I could go home that morning.
“Shortly after I got home, I received a call asking me to go back to the hospital for a scan. As I was being scanned, I said that I thought that the ectopic pregnancy had been removed and then I saw my baby’s heartbeat on the screen.
“I started to cry instantly. I couldn’t speak as I was lost for words.
“It has been difficult to come to terms with the fact that I have not only had unnecessary surgery but have been left unable to have more children naturally.
“I had planned on having two more children as I come from a large family. “The hospital has classed this as a ‘never event’ and it is difficult to understand how this has happened. I just hope that it doesn’t happen to anyone else.”
Irwin Mitchell said the trust has published an internal serious incident investigation report which came to the “inescapable conclusion” that the original procedure “was carried out without appropriate due diligence and attention”.
The report also found that the doctor who carried out the second procedure identified that Ms Thomas had “an obvious” ectopic pregnancy and carried out the procedure without apparent difficulty or delay.
If Ms Thomas’s right tube had been “inspected throughout its entire length, the ectopic pregnancy should have been discovered and removed,” the report stated.
The Trust, which has admitted liability, has offered to fund one round of IVF treatment.
Lawyers acting for Ms Thomas welcomed the NHS trust’s acceptance of liability and urged health bosses to act on recommendations from the hospital’s own post-incident report as soon as possible.
Senior associate solicitor Jenna Harris said: “Understandably Chelsie has been devastated by the events that unfolded and she is still struggling to come to terms with not only losing a child but also the fact that she faces the possibility of not being able to have more children in the future.”
Dr Matthew Lewis, Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust medical director, said the findings of the “robust” investigation had been shared following the incident.
He said in a statement: “We would once again offer our sincere apologies to the patient involved for the fact that our care fell below the standard that we would expect for anyone who uses our services.
“In this particular case, while the necessary checks were carried out before surgery and consent was given, an error was regrettably made.”
Nurses.co.uk editorial team
About the author
Nurses.co.uk editorial team
Bringing you a daily update of nursing, NHS, health and social care news from around the UK.
Want to get involved in the discussion
Sign In JoinRead something else
Covid-19 Didn’t Bring Retired Nurses Back – But It Is Highlighting A Deeper Problem
NHS England has revealed only 1,007 former nurses out of 71,000 returned to work last summer while Covid-sickness absence left hospitals with a net drop of 3,694 full-time nurses.
A Day In The Life Of A Student Nurse During The Pandemic
Student Nurse, Kyle, gives an insight into Student Nursing during the pandemic with a video diary outlining coursework, working from home and student cuisine.
What Band 5 Salary Nurses Get Paid In 2021 – And What You’ll Do To Earn It
The New Pay Deal for the NHS was signed in 2018 and ensured a minimum pay increase for all nurses at all bandings over the subsequent three years. Here’s what it means for Band 5 nurses.
Latest Jobs
Dialysis Nurse
Redditch, Worcestershire, England
TTM Healthcare
Renal Nurse
Redditch, Worcestershire, England
Time Recruitment Solutions
Chemotherapy Staff Nurse
Fazakerley, Liverpool, Merseyside, England
Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust
Staff Nurse - Endoscopy
Manchester, Greater Manchester, England
Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust
Discharge Nurse
Epsom, Surrey, England
Epsom & St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust
Staff Nurse
Margate, Kent, England
Kent & Medway NHS & Social Care Partnership Trust
See all of our RGN jobs
5701 jobs currently available