Doctor on trial for killing patients with "unjustifiable" practices

Oct 1, 2009, 16:46 GMT

Moenchengladbach - A doctor on trial in one of Germany's largest hospital scandals allegedly applied a catalogue of dubious medical practices which some of his patients did not survive, a German court heard on Thursday.

Over several hours, prosecutors presented complaints filed by patients of Arnold Pier, chief physician and owner of a clinic in the town of Wegberg, 10 kilometres from the Dutch border in north-western Germany.

Experts called by the prosecution had deemed the methods used by Pier to be medically unsound, the court in Moenchengladbach heard.

Pier had allegedly applied freshly squeezed lemon juice to patients' wounds, causing infections and in one case even triggering a septic shock which killed a female patient.

Such a procedure was 'medically in no way justifiable,' according to expert assessors cited by prosecution documents, who said the treatment often worsened the patient's condition.

The procedure was referred to in medical records as the administration of ascorbic acid, prosecutors said.

The doctor often operated on patients at their hospital bed in the intensive care unit, rather than transferring them to an operating theatre, the court heard.

In several cases, Pier allegedly removed the patient's gall bladder, although they had come to his clinic with entirely different complaints.

In one case, a female patient died after the surgeon allegedly carried out a complicated stomach operation which the hospital was not equipped for.

In another case, the prosecution stated that Pier neglected to carry out a crucial operation on a patient bearing all the symptoms of blood poisoning.

The dying patient allegedly leapt out of bed shortly before he died. The clinic subsequently said the man had 'lost the courage to live.'

Pier allegedly diagnosed one patient with a tumor and removed a large section of the man's intestine, despite medical findings to the contrary. He refused to treat a woman who did have cancer and who subsequently died, the prosecution said.

Pier's medical interventions had a 'high frequency of complications,' the prosecution summarised.

Pier's defence lawyers said the charges were inadmissible and judgemental, and filed a report of bias against two lawyers and the two jury members. A ruling on their complaint is due next week.

One of the doctor's lawyers, in a letter addressed to German Press Agency dpa, complained of a 'massive pre-judgement' in the media coverage of her client.

None of the claims had been proven, and the doctor was 'convinced he would be able to refute them,' the lawyer wrote.

A number of doctors have been accused of having caused the death of seven patients and the injury of a further 60, motivated by a desire to increase profits and further their own careers.

Alongside the chief physician, five other doctors are being prosecuted in the trial, which is expected to last at least until next March.