Embattled surgeon lied about reason for fatal surgery
Evidence by the surgeon partner of former Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has been slammed by an inquiry into the death of one of his patients.
Weight loss surgeon Reza Adib lied that the reason for performing an ultimately fatal surgery as âlife-threatening obesityâ, when in fact it was for reflux.
A coronial inquest into the death of one of Adibâs patients heavily questioned the reliability and credibility of his evidence, and found the womanâs death was preventable had he reviewed her condition in person before discharging her.
Adib is the partner of former Qld premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and is currently on bail facing unrelated charges including three counts of rape.
Rosemarie Campbell died aged 62, several days after being sent home after undergoing gastric bypass surgery by Adib on February 24, 2022.
Evidence given by Adib to an inquest into her death was found to be heavily questionable, and his practices of record-keeping labelled at times poor or non-existent.
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âI accept Counsel Assistingâs submissions that I should have concern about both the credibility and reliability of Dr Adibâs evidence and his records,â the report by the Queensland Coronerâs court released on Tuesday stated.
âHis evidence needs to be approached with caution.â
A letter written by Adib overstated the womanâs obesity level in order to support her accessing superannuation to pay for the surgery, the inquest found, accepting Adib knew the letterâs contents to be false when he signed it.
âThere is very little within the one-page letter that was in fact true,â the coroner said.
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Adib later admitted the womanâs obesity being a âlife threatening conditionâ as stated in the letter was not true, and that the surgery was in fact to treat reflux.
He explained the false statements resulted from having used a letter template intended to tick the necessary boxes for the Australian Taxation Office to allow early access to superannuation for health reasons.
âIt was an egregious breach of his responsibilities as a medical practitioner to have signed such a letter,â the coroner stated.
âIt reflects very poorly on his credit generally and re-enforces the unreliability of his contemporaneous records.â
Following the surgery, Adib should have paid more concern to the volume of the womanâs vomiting which hinted at a serious complication before discharging her, the inquest also found.
Had Adib reviewed Campbell as he should have, her complications would have been identified and rectified and she would have survived the surgery, the coroner concluded.
âOn what he was told and not told, he should have both asked more questions and then come to review Ms Campbell in person,â the coroner stated.
Adib remains on bail after being charged in May with multiple sex offences in May over an alleged attack on a woman in her 30s at his Burleigh Heads residence on March 30.
He formed a relationship with Palaszczuk in 2021.
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