After his wife died, Don Martin found himself at a loss. If the board decides to act on a complaintand only one in four complaints makes it that farinvestigators begin subpoenaing hospital records, which the board will eventually send to a pair of volunteer doctors in the same specialty who will review the case (if they disagree, a third doctor has to be found to break the tie). Their fellow physicians had found them committing such offenses as malpractice, sexual assault and drug use. The pair met in 2011 at a Memphis bar, known as the Beauty Shop, according toa 2016D Magazineprofile of Duntschs scandalous medical career. In June 2010, following the media circus around the prosecution of the Kermit nurses, they filed a complaint against him. The board suspended his license but then immediately stayed the suspension and gave him probation. Melinda Lehmann, his defense attorney, said Duntsch was a scapegoat for a medical establishment that just kept hiring him and putting him in operating rooms. As those watching the show know, Christopher was dubbed "Dr. Death" in D Magazine for his botched surgeries that caused the death of several patients and left others with disabling injuries. When Kirby saw Glidewell, he later wrote the Medical Board, he was horrified. The incision, he wrote, was cut into Glidewells throat two or three inches lower and an inch midline from where it should have been oriented saliva and pus were coming out of the wound.. Among neurosurgeons, the procedure isnt considered terribly difficult. Mr. Duntsch's trial took place in 2017. They showed photos of him as a baby, as a toddler, and as a boy getting a soccer ball for Christmas. Out of his 38 surgeries, only three had no complications. Upon his return, Duntsch performed surgery on a patient named Kellie Martinand she bled to death. When he arrived in Dallas in late 2010, Duntsch's resume spoke of a skilled neurosurgeon: An M.D. We talked about marriage pretty quickly. He works out, he reads, he studies the Bible. To suspend a license, as one Medical Board staffer explained, there has to be enough evidence to prove a pattern. When he moved to Dallas in late 2010, Duntsch was 41 years old, fresh out of a residency program at the University of Tennessee Health Science Centers Department of Neurosurgery in Memphis. Duntschs license is currently on temporary suspension pending further action by the board. He felt, Kirby wrote to the Texas Medical Board a year later, that most of the spine surgery being done in Dallas was malpractice, and he was going to have to clean things up.. In the time between the first complaint to the board, and when Duntsch was finally stopped on June 26, five of his patients were seriously injured and one died. Among these doctors who escaped Medical Board action was one who racked up 22 malpractice suits over 12 years, totaling $2.4 million in judgments, for such things as performing unnecessary or harmful procedures or, in one case, removing the wrong body part, according to the federal database. But when I talked to Medical Board spokesperson Megan Goode about this, she said Public Citizen had it wrongthat the board isnt underfunded at all. When she responds, shes quiet. Dr. Kirby, on his end, called him a sociopath. Scans later revealed bone fragments from Morguloffs vertebrae lodged in the nerves of his back, according to Lyons. On the online doctor-rating site Healthgrades.com, he had 4.5 stars out of five. [2] The division consists of two tiers within it: Premier Division A and Premier Division B. Instead, Duntsch would find himself behind bars for life after botching more than 30 surgeriesresulting in the death of two patients and earning him the nickname Dr. Once Duntsch proved himself inept, hospitals let him resign instead of going through the legal process of firing him. These doctors are anomalies too. Joshua Jackson as Christopher Duntsch in "Dr. Death." Barbara Nitke/Peacock Duntsch, 50, was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2017 in what's considered a precedent-setting case one of the. AnnaSophia Robb Stars In New Series Dr. 121. He was friendly, and we had good conversation. Wendy Young, portrayed by Molly Griggs in Dr. Death, was the name of Duntsch's real girlfriend. Of the three in the academy, viz. Why Did Dr. Death Do It? 'Dr. Death: The Undoctored Story' Explains ", Mary's botched surgery was one of several in Christopher's record. He had no idea what he was doing. According to The Dallas Morning News, he will be up for parole in 2045, when he is 74. The conversation took place in January 2013, after it had become clear that Duntsch would practice until someone stopped him, six months before anyone actually did. A version of this story ran in the September 2013 issue. Every time a doctor loses clinical privileges at a hospital, or has them suspended, hospitals are required by law to notify the National Practitioner Databank. Of that set, two died and 31 were paralyzed or seriously injured. . For the last three days, jurors listened to testimony in the . So while hospital administrators did a deeper background examination, they granted Duntsch temporary privileges. Kirby said Duntsch had problems at nearly every step of the operation. Kellie Martin was in good health; a laminectomy is considered a minor procedure. The surgery had gone so badly, Kirby later wrote to the Medical Board, that the rest of the OR team had to physically restrain Duntsch from continuing. Given the graphic subject matter, if you're squeamish, keep your finger on the "fast forward" button while watching Dr. Death. Even more surprising, these crimes came from a doctor who looked great on paper. For example, when Duntsch left Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano, the hospital provided a letter confirming there had been no "summary or administrative restrictions or suspensions," despite the fact that Duntsch had been suspended for 30 days following Summers's surgery. By the time she was transferred to UT Southwestern Medical Center later that day, she was brain dead. And the only thing she complained about was she couldnt find what she wanted to watch on TV.. Dr. Christopher Duntschs patients ended up maimed and dead, but the real tragedy is that the Texas Medical Board couldnt stop him. Who Were The Victims Of Dr. Christopher Duntsch? | True Crime Buzz The Terrifying True Story Behind Peacock's Dr. Death - Yahoo Duntsch was once an up and coming neurosurgeon. More than a year had passed since Kellie Martins death and the complaint that started it all. The jury found Duntsch guilty of injury to an elderly person (Efurd), and sentenced him to life in prison. According to the outlet, while Jerry's lawyer said Christopher could now be criminally charged after his client's death, he believes Jerry wouldn't want that "because he had forgiven his friend for what had happened.". Alexander Zverev was dumped out in the last 16 of the ATP tournament in Munich, suffering a straight sets defeat to Christopher O'Connell on Thursday. Prince Charming, Im gonna change your life, Wendy Young said of the promising start to her romance with Christopher Duntsch. Then he waited for several more hours until the nurses came out to tell him and his daughters that Kellie Martin was dead. He was found guilty of his crimes in 2017 and sentenced to life in prison. 2022 Calcutta Premier Division - Wikipedia 'Dr. Death': Who Are the Real People in the True-Crime Drama? - Newsweek This will not bring my mother back, but it is some sense of justice for the all the families, for all of the victims.. He told Young that Morgan was his assistant and there was nothing romantic going on between the pair. Articles must link back to the original article and contain the following attribution at the top of the story: This article was originally published by the, Articles cannot be rewritten, edited or changed beyond alignments with house style books. Within a month of hiring Kimberly Morgan, who was a nurse practitioner, to help him run his new practice, the pair were sleeping together, according to the podcast. Hes been devastated, Don Duntsch said. This was the time when Dr. Christopher Duntsch started to turn into Dr. Death. But according to Dr. Robert Henderson, another neurosurgeon at Dallas Medical Center, the comprehensive information Baylor sent over when Duntsch applied consisted of an email saying that there were no issues with Duntschs performance, that hed been on staff and had voluntarily resigned. Duntsch was also arrested for driving under the influence while staying with his parents in Colorado and found himself in handcuffs another time in April of 2015 after he was arrested for stealing $887.30 in Walmart merchandise, according to theD Magazine. The "deadly weapons" were his hands and surgical tools. 'Dr. Death' Surgeon Killed or Maimed 33 of His Patients - People In July 2012, four months after Kellie Martins death, Duntsch applied for surgical privileges at Dallas Medical Center. Nevertheless, Christopher had his medical license stripped in 2013 and was eventually brought to justice after Mary took him to court. Because of greed. Sometimes hell have bedtime stories and try to be as normal as possible.". Kirby called the owner of University General. His younger brother, Nathan, said he had spoken to Duntschs friend and former employee, Jerry Summers, who was left a quadriplegic after one of the botched surgeries. The Untold Truth Of Dr. Death - Grunge Prince Charming, Imgonnachange your life, Young toldCNBCsAmerican Greed inan episode airing earlier this year. Site made in collaboration with CMYK. He was the eldest of four.They described him as the bright, precocious little boy who had taken care of a sick bird and loved dogs. In 2012, when Efurd was 74, she saw Duntsch for what should have been a relatively simple surgery to fuse two of her vertebrae. A man who was a victim of other people's bad work and bad behavior," he told Newsweek. In 2007, he was found to be leaving presigned prescription pads with his nurse so she could prescribe controlled substances while he was away, according to Public Citizen. Where Is Dr. Death Now? - Here's Where Christopher Duntsch Is Today in 2021 He put together a website and began bringing in patients. "He was interpersonally a monster, a nightmare to be around. This has freed hospitals from the fear of litigation, but its also removed the financial motivation for policing their own physicians. Dr. Christopher Duntsch, better known as Doctor Death, is serving a life sentence at a Texas prison today, according to his inmate record. Duntsch, 40, met Wendy, 27, at a bar where she was working as a stripper. A 27-year-old Young had been working as a stripper in Memphis when she met Duntsch, then 40. In February of 2017, Christopher was sentenced to life in prison. Before moving to West Texas, Arafiles had run a small alternative clinic in Victoria, peddling chelation therapy, a fringe cure that is supposed to rid the body of heavy metals. Death Based On A True Story, Joshua Jackson On Role Of Surgeon, Christopher Duntsch, In Peacocks Dr. I'm a complex spine surgeon. But the result is that unless a doctor is caught dealing drugs or sexually assaulting patientsor is convicted of a felonyit is difficult to get his or her license revoked. Multiple people dead, dozens injured after dust storm causes massive pileup on I-55 in Illinois, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. It was horrible. Christopher Duntsch, who once claimed to be a mixture of "God, Einstein and the Antichrist," injured or killed 33 of his 38 patients in less than two years, according to prosecutors. . When the Medical Board suspended Duntschs license, the agencys spokespeople too seemed shocked. Kirby had spent 16 years performing general surgery in the Dallas area, in which time hed assisted on more than 2,000 spine operations. What all this means is that the Texas Legislature has committed the state to a policy of medical deregulationa free-market system in which doctors can practice as they please with limited government interference. I think their rationale was, hes a trained neurosurgeon, a combined M.D.-Ph.D., Henderson said. As a stay-at-home mom to the couplestwochildren,she also found herself in financial trouble and was evicted from her home twice. The surgery, he said, beaming into the camera, was a resounding success. It was widely acknowledged that Christopher was a confident person, and D Magazine reported that many liked him immediately when they met him (though his fellow neurosurgeons reportedly found him to be "fast-talking and cocksure"). I thought, this couldnt have happened. and a Ph.D. from a top-tier medical school, a decade of experience, and a central role in a pioneering stem-cell treatment. The true story of Christopher Duntsch is the subject of the haunting Peacock drama. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. Doctors brought in to clean up his surgeries decried his surgical misadventures, according to hospital records. You know, hell call and say goodnight to his boys, um, sometimes hell have bedtime stories and try to be as normal as possible.. You're probably asking, How could Duntsch have gotten away with a string of botched surgeries? Outlets must also tag the Observer in all social media posts. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. According to Kirby, the hospital owner told him that Duntsch had privileges to do only minimally invasive surgeries. So to be able to do that much wrong, I felt that he must have known at some point in time how to do it right. Duntsch was a highlysought-after neurosurgeon who promised her a life filled with extravagance and success. But perhaps more terrifying, the show depicts the chilling real-life story of Dallas-area neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch, who. She even alleged that after a drug-fueled night of partying, she watched as Christopher put on his lab coat "to make the rounds the next morning.". Finally the family fired him. Friends since they played football together in high school, Summers helped Duntsch stay organized while he worked in the lab during his residency. According to ProPublica, most neurosurgery residents perform 1,000 operations; Duntsch completed 100. When Summers woke up he couldnt move his arms or legs. Its a completely egregious case, Leigh Hopper, then head of communications for the Texas Medical Board, told The Dallas Morning News in June. How much risk can there be?. After the Brown and Efurd debacles in July 2012, the CEO of Dallas Medical Center, Dr. Corazon Hernandez, fired Duntsch and reported him to the Medical Board, according to Henderson. They just cant comprehend that an M.D.-Ph.D. neurosurgeon could do what Christopher Duntsch was doing. His father was a missionary and physical therapist and his mother was a school teacher. Written by Patrick Macmanus, the show will only be available exclusively on Peacock. Another spinal fusion; another routine procedure. His mistakes were obvious and well-documented. Doctors rights are to be protected at every step of the process. The board fined him $3,000, assigned him a monitor, and required him to take classes in medical recordkeeping. Mary told reporters afterward, "I think its going to be like a floodgate thats going to really open, crying. The temporary suspension was a power the Legislature gave the board in 2003. Duntsch was an anomaly, one of the worst malpractice cases Texas has seen in decades. As D Magazine put it, "His outcomes were so poor, so beyond the accepted standard of care, that a grand jury indicted him on five counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon as well as a single count of harming an elderly patient." Indian Football - DSK Shivajians reel with unpaid dues, managerial He nicked the patients vertebral artery, causing the space he was working in to fill with blood. But what is the real-life story behind Duntsch and Youngs complicated romance? He just had no recognition of the proper anatomy. 5 years after 'Dr. Death,' doctors still come to Texas to leave pasts This defendant single-handedly ruined their lives, and he gave each of them a life of pain, prosecutor Michelle Shughart told jurors in closing statements. Out July 15, Dr. Death introduces viewers to Christopher Duntsch, a real-life Texas-based surgeon who in 2017 was sentenced to life in prison after maiming and even killing almost all of the. Like pilot trainingyou dont expect a trained pilot to get drunk and fly his plane into the ground., But its more complicated than that. I had so much anger, because my life changed so much. Those are the words that Dr. Christopher Duntsch, a Dallas neurosurgeon, wrote to his girlfriend in 2011 in the midst of a two-year period that left 33 of his 38 patients maimed, wounded or . It is said to be rare for a physician to be indicted on several counts of aggravated assault stemming from events in an operating room. It isnt enough to prove that a doctor did something awful. Kayla Keegan leads Good Housekeepings editorial growth strategies in the partnership, news, social, branded, membership and newsletter spaces. This was a very rare phenomenonmost of the doctors who reported Duntsch had never filed a report before. I dont know what it is, she said. Duntsch, who is now 50, is serving time in a Texas prison. Only their consciences, and those of their fellow doctors, limit them. "I think all of us will be thinking about things like this, and hopefully there will be some tighter controls, more accountability in a lot of areas so something like this wont happen again. I left with him and believed in him and then, you know, he just kind of fell apart.. While that complaint worked its way through the system, another of his patients died of a hydrocodone overdose. Duntschs case raises the question: If it took a year to stop a doctor accused of this much, what else is getting through? The first three surgeries of Duntschs trial took place on three consecutive days in July 2012, a month after the first complaint against him with the Texas Medical Board. We rely on the generosity of our readers who believe that this work is important. A 27-year-old Young had been working as a stripper in Memphis when she met Duntsch, then 40. The Legislature has also made suing hospitals difficult. He was smart. 2023 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Satellite Information Network, LLC. By Jill Sederstrom & Leah Carroll Joshua Jackson On Role Of Surgeon, Christopher Duntsch, In Peacock's "Dr. Death" Series Now Playing Digital Original His report was damning. Jackson developed a perspective on his character. His mom was a teacher. With the exception of pain management clinics and anesthesiologists, the board doesnt have the authority to inspect a doctor, or to start an investigation on its own. The relationship between Duntsch and Morgan would come to an end after he leftBaylor Medical Center in Planoamidst criticism that he had botched multiple surgeries, including one that left a patient dead. The romance played out mostly in Duntsch's office at Baylor Plano, where he often did research after hours and drank vodka from a handle of Stoli he kept under his desk, according to D Magazine. We moved in together within three months, and then I became pregnant.. He was listed as a pre-business major, a university spokesperson confirmed Thursday. Kellie Martin and her husband, Don, went to see Duntsch, who suggested a procedure called a microlaminectomy, in which part of the spine is removed to relieve pressure on the nerves. Across two years, Duntsch . In January 2012, he assisted on one of Duntschs surgeries. Rather than immediately ordering scans to find out what was wrong, Duntsch moved on to other patients, according to Kirbys letter to the Medical Board. Duntsch was still living with Young, but he tried to carry out the dual romances by lying to each woman. Why didnt he stop? Efurd, who is now wheelchair-bound, spoke to reporters following the sentencing. All of the Texas Observers articles are available for free syndication for news sources under the following conditions: In late 2010, Dr. Christopher Duntsch came to Dallas to start a neurosurgery practice. The boards mandate, spelled out in the Medical Practice Act, recognizes a doctors license as a hard-won, valuable credential. Another woman named Megan Kane claimed he ate a paper blotter of LSD and took prescription painkillers in the early 2000s on his birthday. Because he had no conscience. Into this milieu rolled Christopher Duntsch, M.D., like a 100-year storm. He blamed Summers paralysis on Duntschs surgical misadventures, which had led to the artery being cut; the final straw, he wrote in his report, had been the packing of coagulants around the cut, which had seriously damaged Summers spinal cord. At the time, Duntsch had been fielding offers in Dallas, San Diego and New York from medical centers eager to have a neurosurgeon with his seemingly impressive resume on staff. Dr. Death is the new true-crime drama on Peacock, based on the 2018 podcast series of the same name. 300 (2.48 per match) 2021. Though the Texas Medical Board is required by statute to investigate any doctor with more than three malpractice suits, no action was ever taken against the doctor by the state. He listed the cause of death as therapeutic misadventure, according to his report. Duntschwho was just completing a prestigious spine surgery fellowship in Tennesseebought Young an appletini and the two immediately clicked. In this case, as well, the Texas Medical Board took no action, according to Public Citizen. The 2022 Calcutta Football League Premier Division was the 124th overall season of the two highest state-level football divisions of West Bengal. 'Dr. Death' clings to the wrong part of a true story - Mic Duntschs explanation, along with the email from Baylor, was enough to get him a trial run of five surgeries at Dallas Medical Center. Up until 2003, medical care in Texas was regulated by a system of checks. I was very independent and I had to become dependent on others for transportation, for my meals, for a lot of things," she said. Kirby, the surgeon from Baylor, was philosophical. Don was a lieutenant with the Garland Police Department, and had spent enough time in hospitals to know this delay wasnt a good sign. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. For a temporary suspension, the standard is even higher than the boards other enforcement actions. Im just so grateful from the bottom of my heart, she said. A dissection of an esophagus led to significant blood loss in one patient. The nuance of his private life is obscured by allusions to a failed football career and a demeaning father that somehow are. But the Medical Board wasnt designed to be an aggressive enforcer. Dr. Death: The Shocking Story of Christopher Duntsch, a Madman with a Two weeks later, on June 14, 2013, Kirby got a call to come to University General to do a recovery surgery on one of Duntschs patients. What Happened To Jerry Summers, 'Dr. Death' Christopher Duntsch's In 1998, the board found Dr. Greggory Phillips to be addicted to painkillers, and that he was prescribing painkillers to himself and family members. and a Ph.D. from a top-tier medical school, a decade of experience, and a central role in a pioneering stem-cell treatment. Whatever the reason, this time the board acted. Its left to hospitals to police their doctors. Topping it all off had been Duntschs failure to order tests and re-operate on Summers in a timely mannera delay that likely cost his childhood friend the use of his arms and legs, according to the senior surgeons report. Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. Some drag on for years. are both available to stream on Peacock now. Who Is Kimberly Morgan, 'Dr. Death' Christopher Duntsch's Assistant His daughter, Caitlin Martin-Linduff, was relieved and tearful to know Duntsch will never hurt anyone again. Texas law states that hospitals are liable for damages caused by doctors in their facilities only if the plaintiff can prove that the hospital acted with malicethat is, the hospital knew of extreme risk and ignored itin credentialing a doctor. He wrote grants and secured more than $3 million in funding. Dallas Medical Center also declined to comment, citing privacy concerns. In 2017, Duntsch was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of maiming one of his patients. It shouldnt happen again.". His father says Christopher Duntsch is a humbled man. I couldnt believe a trained surgeon could do this, Henderson told me. The patients mother complained to the Medical Board. That July, Duntsch was firing off panicked emails to his business partners at 4 am. Every patient that I interviewed told me that one of the first things Dr. Duntsch would tell them when they initially met was that he was the best surgeon in Dallas," Henderson, played by Alec Baldwin in the show, told People. His performance, Kirby wrote, was pathetic . The. But the real tragedy of the Christopher Duntsch story is how preventable it was. Dallas Magazine states that Duntsch became key in supplying samples to scientists for research. Dr. Death, which premieres on July 15 on Peacock, shows the horrors that followed once he was on the job. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. In 2017, Duntsch was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of maiming one of his patients. Those were the words that Christopher Duntsch never wanted to hear. They all received the same response Henderson had: Send us what you have, and well get back to you.
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