"Yes, she was drilling!"

12-year-old in surgery: decision on charges soon

What exactly happened during the operation on 13 January 2024 in Graz? (symbolic image)

(Bild: stock.adobe.com)

What (active) role did the twelve-year-old daughter of a surgeon play in a skull operation in Graz last year? A decision should soon be made as to whether the mother and six other people will be charged or not: the most important expert opinion is now complete and the preliminary report is being submitted to the public prosecutor's office.

On January 13, 2024, a surgeon in Graz smuggled her twelve-year-old daughter into an operating room. There, an emergency patient, a 33-year-old Styrian at the time, was operated on after a forestry accident. It is suspected that the girl had a hand in the operation and even drilled a hole in his head. 

Several versions
The "Krone" newspaper uncovered the case in June, shortly before which the public prosecutor's office opened an investigation. Three versions of what actually happened can be found in the investigation file. The first version, which was also admitted by the actual surgeon, at least within the hospital, but has since been denied: "Yes, she drilled!" The surgeon initially denied entirely that her daughter had been involved.

The current version is that the child only held the surgeon's hand during the drilling procedure, but that he was in control at all times.

Investigations have been completed
The investigation has now been completed. An expert was commissioned to assess the severity of the injuries caused by the drilling of the last, relevant borehole. Now that he has also answered additional questions from the public prosecutor, the complete neurosurgical report is now available, according to public prosecutor's spokesperson Hansjörg Bacher.

And the preliminary report on whether or not charges will be brought has already been sent to the senior public prosecutor's office. A decision is expected soon. A total of seven people (three doctors and four surgical assistants) are being investigated on suspicion of grievous bodily harm as a result of an improperly performed operation. 

Dismissal contested in court
Incidentally, the doctor has challenged her dismissal without notice by the hospital company Kages before the labor court. An agreement was recently reached: The dismissal was converted into a termination, and the neurosurgeon is also said to have been awarded a sum of money.