First Male Member of Family to Be Circumcised – Without Consent

CBS 4 News in Miami is reporting that a mother from South Florida has sued the South Miami Hospital, and a surgeon on their staff, because her baby boy was circumcised without her consent.

Spencer Aronfeld, the family's attorney, stated, "For nearly 20 years that I have practiced law. I have not seen a case like this. This is not medical practice. It's a battery."

The suit has been filed in Coral Gables Circuit Court for both battery and negligence.

The child's mother, Vera Delgado, spoke with CBS 4 to report, "They didn't have consent.  We never did sign anything and after they performed this circumcision, they didn't call me right away. They didn't say anything. I was very mad."

Delgado contends that she repeatedly told the doctors at South Miami Hospital that her baby son, Mario, was not to be circumcised. Nonetheless, eight days after his birth Mario had surgery for circumcision. He is now four weeks old.

In an exclusive interview with Gio Benitez of CBS 4, Delgado said, "I was crying. I spent that day and the next day crying."

It is a family tradition for all of the males in the Delgado family to be uncircumcised. 

Delgado revealed in a new conference, before she filed the lawsuit, her concerns, "The thing is his father does not have a circumcision. His brother does not have one. What would happen in the future if he starts to ask questions? Parents have to be there 24-7 at the hospital. Ask questions and make sure this does not happen."

Aronfeld reiterated her cause by stating, "While there are some people who say circumcisions are beneficial, there are others who say they are not necessary. They went and they did an unnecessary, unwanted procedure on this child without the parent's permission."

Aronson concluded, "I see hospitals make mistakes all the time. What I don't see is hospitals make mistakes, and admit them. We want to find the name of the person who gave the order for circumcision, who authorized the surgery and the use of that scalpel.   Ms. Delgado and the father were adamant that the baby not be circumcised."

Delgado is particularly sensitive about her son's health as he was already in the intensive care unit after his birth - for a total of ten days -  and the surgery was performed on the eighth. 

The full statement from the hospital reads, "The baby's circumcision was an unfortunate mistake caused by a misread consent form. As soon as the error was discovered, the doctor and nurses let the family know what had occurred. We also immediately implemented new processes to ensure this mistake will not occur again. The procedure itself was performed following appropriate surgical guidelines and the baby didn't have any complications. Nevertheless, we're all deeply sorry that this happened."

If you, or someone you hold dear, have been unnecessarily hurt while under a doctor's care, contact a Medical Malpractice Attorney to discuss your legal rights.