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A brain surgeon in Austria has denied claims that she let her 12-year-old daughter drill into a patient\u2019s head during emergency surgery, according to multiple reports.<\/p>\n
U.K. papers The Times<\/a><\/em> and The Telegraph<\/a><\/em> reported that the alleged incident took place in January 2024 after a farm worker was flown to the country\u2019s University Hospital Graz after a tree branch fell on his head.<\/p>\n More than one year after the incident occurred, the trial began on Tuesday, October 14, according to Austrian newspaper The Kronen Zeitung<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n It was claimed during the trial that the surgeon\u2019s daughter was interested in medicine and asked her mother to let her watch the operation, according to The Times<\/em>. The young girl was allegedly handed surgical scrubs and joined the team to help with the surgery.<\/p>\n Britney Spears Slams Kevin Federline\u2019s Allegations In New Book: \u2018Extremely Hurtful and Exhausting\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cShe took the 12-year-old girl into the operating theater, where she drilled a hole into the exposed skullcap alone and without help. Beforehand, the accused explained the function of the drilling device,\u201d prosecutor Julia Steiner<\/strong> alleged, per Kronen Zeitung<\/em>.<\/p>\n During the trial, it was alleged that the girl helped with a minor procedure that involved inserting a probe to measure intracranial pressure and included drilling a hole into the skull, according to The Times<\/em>.<\/p>\n The female surgeon \u2013 who has not been publicly named \u2013 allegedly left the procedure to a male junior colleague when she left the table to make a phone call.<\/p>\n \u201cMy biggest mistake was letting her go to the operating table,\u201d the female surgeon said, per The Telegraph<\/em>.<\/p>\n Judge Gundula Neudeck<\/strong> then responded, \u201cYour biggest mistake was probably taking her there in the first place; a child has no business being there.\u201d<\/p>\n Both the junior and senior surgeons were fired following the incident. The trial is still ongoing, but they could face a potential conviction for causing bodily harm by letting an untrained person treat a patient if the court finds that the daughter did operate the drill.<\/p>\n The Telegraph reported that the junior surgeon claimed the girl did drill after she asked if she could help. \u201cI was surprised by the question, but I didn\u2019t refuse it, which was a huge mistake,\u201d the junior surgeon said in court, adding that he believed the senior surgeon approved it.<\/p>\n While he said that the girl placed her hand on the drill, he insisted he \u201cwas always in control of the pedal [that controlled the speed] and always in control of the drill.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou are proud that you have taken good care of the patient, but you only [realize] later that a mistake has been made that is morally and ethically unacceptable,\u201d the junior surgeon, according to the outlet.<\/p>\n