BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — An attorney for two Alabama doctors accused in a lawsuit of amputating a man’spenis in what was supposed to have been a routine circumcision filed a motion Tuesday seeking to dismiss the claims.
Attorney Mike Florie says his clients, Dr. Michael Bivins and Dr. Alan Aikens, never performed a circumcision on Johnny Lee Banks Jr. that involved the removal of tissue or the amputation of the man’s penis. He said the suit’s claims are false.
Banks’ attorney, John Graves, filed the lawsuit on July 22, accusing the doctors and their medical groups of malpractice, negligence and other wrongdoing. It seeks an unspecified amount of money.
Graves says he stands firmly by the allegations but would not comment on specifics of the case.
Earlier this month, Will Axon, a lawyer defending the two doctors, said “When the facts become known this will be seen as an unfair attempt to damage the reputations of dedicated physicians and their outstanding clinics with sensational claims that are completely false,” said Axon.
Axon declined to answer questions about specifics in the suit, including whether the man had a penis when he left the hospital.
Banks and his wife filed the lawsuit this week against Drs. Vincent Michael Bivins and Alan Aikens, their medical groups and a hospital. Banks claims his penis was wrongly amputated during a circumcision last month and no one ever told him why.
The lawsuit accuses the defendants of medical malpractice, negligence and other wrongdoing. It seeks an unspecified amount of money.
The hospital, Princeton Baptist Medical Center, previously said the claims are without merit.
The lawsuit contends Banks went to the hospital last month for a circumcision and awoke following the operation without a penis. No one ever warned that amputation could result from the procedure or explained what happened, the suit said.
The suit also names Urology Centers of Alabama, where Bivins works, and Simon-Williamson Clinic, where Aikens works.
The complaint says Bivins treated Banks for conditions that led to the circumcision and Aikens was scheduled to perform the procedure.
Did they send him a bill? If so, case closed.
“Why did you remove my penis man?”
Awkward silence.
Comment by doctor from the OR “Aw Shit!”
Barnum’s axiom “All publicity is good publicity” just took a powder.
The usual medical reason for a penis amputation is cancer [1], and I’ve never heard of a circumcision performed with a general anesthetic. Could Banks have misunderstood or been misinformed about the reason for his surgery?
Also, HIPAA does sort of impose a gag order for medical malpractice cases, which is probably why the docs and hospital aren’t talking.
[1] Most common cause of penile cancer? HPV. Which is why every kid should be vaccinated, not just girls, and why Mrs. Banks should probably check in with her gynecologist.