A weight loss surgeon who operated on the British girl who died after the treatment has claimed he “did nothing wrong”. Dr Serkan Bayil refuted allegations of mishandling the surgery on the unfortunate Morgan Ribeiro, aged 20, asserting that he committed no errors during the procedure.
Morgan utilised her trust fund to finance gastric sleeve surgery performed by Dr Bayil in Istanbul, Turkey. Tragically, she collapsed during her return flight and subsequently passed away in the hospital.
Dr Bayil claimed that her death had nothing to do with the operation and claimed she died due to an embolism on the plane. However, Morgan’s bereaved mother, Erin Gibson, 44, expressed frustration with his evaluation, stating that surgeons had informed her that her daughter’s small intestine had been severed.
The gastric sleeve surgery procedure includes the placement of a silicone band that constricts the stomach, enabling individuals to experience a sense of fullness sooner.
While the cost for private treatment in the UK ranges from £8,000 to £10,000, the same procedure in Turkey is priced at just £2,500.
Morgan underwent the surgery on January 5 and received clearance from Dr Bayil to return home to South London by January 9.
However, complications arose during her flight back to Gatwick, leading to a suspected onset of septic shock. The plane was diverted to Serbia for emergency medical intervention, but sadly, she passed away four days later.
Dr Bayil told the Mirror at the Medivita hospital in Istanbul that Morgan’s death had nothing to do with her surgery there. He said: “She died due to an embolism on the flight, not due to complications from the surgery.
“Her vital signs were good when she left us. The most fearful thing in these operations is leakage and she had zero leakage and because of this I think she had an embolism.”
Her mother, Erin said a post-mortem was currently being carried out on Morgan in the UK. She said doctors in Belgrade had told her that Morgan’s small intestine was damaged during the operation.
Responding to the doctor’s claims that Morgan had an embolism, she said: “That is preposterous. It wasn’t an embolism. It was a laceration. It had been cut, we were told during the operation. I was told that she was showing signs of fever immediately because her body was already going into septic shock. She had broken down food leaking into her bloodstream. She was already on the way down when she was still in that hospital.
“If that is true, how can they not have picked that up and then release her from their hospital? She was complaining that she wasn’t well. There aftercare was ‘make sure you get up and walk around’.
“Can you imagine the pain that poor child was in? There needs to be some accountability. This isn’t just ‘she had an embolism’, she was cut in the small intestine, and I believe he didn’t pick it up. We were told this by the Serbian surgeons. This cosmetic tourism must stop.”
Dr Bayil, a respected surgeon for 20 years, explained the Turkish authorities visited him on Monday to begin investigating the case and took away all reports but that he is allowed to continue working in the meantime. He also expressed his sorrow at Morgan’s death but insisted Turkey was a safe place to have surgery.
He said: “I am sad, so, so sad, she was so young I wish that this had never happened, it is the first time in my career. Two others from England who had the same surgery are very happy with it. But in surgery, there are always complications, always risk. I would say it is safe to come to Turkey, this is just a tragic incident.”
Following Morgan’s death, Serbian prosecutors and British authorities have initiated investigations. This came after Serbian medical professionals in Belgrade were compelled to surgically remove 3 inches of her small intestine in an effort to manage the infection.
