Dubai Prosecution appeals against botched nose job case verdict

Dubai: Dubai Public Prosecution has appealed against the one-year jail sentence against a healthcare professional who performed a nose job that left an Emirati woman in a coma, requesting a harsher sentence.

The 59-year-old ENT (ear, nose and throat) surgeon from the Dominican Republic, a 65-year-old anaesthetist and the anaesthetist’s assistant, 69, from Syria, were referred to the court for alleged mistakes that led to the permanent disability of 25-year-old Rawdha Abdullah Al Maeeni in April last year.

All were sentenced to one year in jail to be followed by deportation on March 18. The medical centre was fined Dh300,000.

Dubai’s Attorney General Eissam Essam Eisa Al Humaidan ordered on Wednesday to appeal against the first instance judgment.

“Dubai Public Prosecution appealed the verdict and requested that the punishment be increased,” prosecution said in a statement.

Earlier, prosecution checked the medical reports, questioned the suspects and the witnesses for several months until the final medical report was presented to the investigation team on November 20, 2019. The report confirmed that the medical staff committed a medical mistake.

Investigations revealed that the incident happened on April 23, 2019, when Rawdha, a first year master’s student of hospital management, checked into a Dubai centre for a rhinoplasty as she had difficulties in breathing.

Prosecution said that the ENT doctor did the surgery at a day care surgery centre which wasn’t qualified to conduct such surgeries. He did the surgery with the anaesthetist and anaesthetist’s assistant.

The investigation confirmed that the medical staff committed a serious medical mistake which resulted in multiple disabilities, according to the medical report by the higher committee for medical responsibility at Dubai Health Authority (DHA).

Rawdha suffered a cardiac arrest on the operating table and the investigative report stated that her brain had been deprived of oxygen for a full seven minutes.

Time line

• April 23, 2019: Rawdha Abdulla Al Maeeni checks into a day care surgery centre for a septoplasty. The surgery, which was to last two hours, stretches to six hours and the patient slips into a coma.

• April 23 evening: Patient is rushed to Prime Hospital where doctors attempt to revive her

• April 24: Patient airlifted to Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi where she remained in intensive care

• June 20: Patient airlifted to a hospital in Chicago, US, for long-term treatment. His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, offered to cover her medical expenses in the US

• November 20: Prosecution received final medical report

• January 2, 2020: Case referred to Dubai Criminal Court

• January 20, 2020: First hearing at Dubai Criminal Court

• March 18,2020: Medical staff and the centre found guilty at Dubai Criminal Court

• April 1, 2020: Dubai Public Prosecution appealed the verdict asking for harsher sentence