Attorney Joe Zarzaur, alongside widow Beverly Bryan, filed a lawsuit suing Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky and his practice, the Sacred Heart Health System, Ascension Health Inc., and four of the nurses who cared for 70-year-old William ‘Bill’ Bryan at Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast in Miramar Beach.
Bryan underwent surgery to have his spleen removed, but Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky allegedly removed Bryan’s liver instead.
Following the surgery, Zarzaur alleges hospital staff attempted to hide Shaknovsky’s errors and falsified a death certificate and other state death records.
“So not only do we have a medical malpractice that may be the most egregious medical malpractice in the history of this country, but we have a hospital system, a Catholic hospital system of all hospital systems, that decided consciously and intentionally to then lie about it and cover it up,” Attorney Joe Zarzaur said.
“It’s very disheartening to think the hospital, a place that you think you’re safe and people are caring for you, a hospital, would not be trustworthy,” Beverly Bryan said.
Zarzaur claims the Aug. 21 surgery is Shaknovsky’s second wrong-site surgery in two years, with a previous case being settled at the same facility in 2023.
“As soon as that wrong site surgery in 2023 that should’ve been the end of his surgical career at Sacred Heart Emerald Coast,” Zarzaur said.
Ascension Sacred Heart told WKRG News 5 that they do not discuss active litigation and have no comments to provide.