Victorian hairdresser’s ‘simple’ surgery turned into ‘nightmare’ ordeal

A former hairdresser in Victoria was given “hours to live” after her “simple” keyhole operation went dangerously wrong.

A former hairdresser was given “hours to live” after a “simple” keyhole operation went dangerously wrong.

Once a fit and healthy single mum, Danielle Hill ended up comatose in intensive care for 10 days and hospitalised for five weeks after her bowel was nicked during a routine laparoscopic revision surgery at Peninsula Private Hospital in the Mornington Peninsula on April 30.

The 50-year-old Victorian developed sepsis as a result, with doctors later informing her she’d been close to death because the infection raged for five days before it was detected, Ms Hill told the Herald Sun.

She now has a stoma bag, is in constant pain, and says she feels “like an 80-year-old woman” who is no longer able to work.

Daily life as a parent to her 15-year-old daughter, Ms Hill said, has become “a nightmare”.

Peninsula Private Hospital is operated by Australian multinational healthcare provider and hospital network, Ramsay Health Care.

Danielle Hill before her keyhole surgery ‘nightmare’. Picture: Supplied

The 50-year-old now, almost three months after the procedure. Picture: Supplied

Ms Hill underwent the surgery to rectify issues remaining from a partial hysterectomy in October 2022, and said she was told she’d only require hospitalisation for one night.

She doesn’t remember much of the aftermath, she said, “obviously because my body was being ridiculously poisoned – it was horrific”.

“My daughter’s dad got a phone call on the fifth day saying: ‘If we don’t operate, she’s got hours to live’,” Ms Hill said, describing the ordeal as “disgusting”.

‘My daughter’s dad got a phone call on the fifth day saying, ‘If we don’t operate, she’s got hours to live’.’ Picture: Supplied

“Duty of care should have made them realise that if I wasn’t getting better after the second day, then something’s not right,” she said.

“I ended up in a coma and in intensive care. Basically the bowel surgeon then saved my life. He cut me open right up the middle and across.

“I now have a stoma bag for six months … none of this would have happened if they hadn’t left me so long … My body was completely septic,” Ms Hill said.

She has been fitted with a stoma bag for the next six months. Picture: Supplied

Ms Hill is now unable to ‘work until next year’. Picture: Supplied

After waking from the second surgery and on a powerful cocktail of drugs, Ms Hill thought she’d been abducted. In her state of panic, tubes got stuck in her throat and her lungs filled with fluid, creating additional complications.

Now unable to “work until next year”, Ms Hill has been forced to rely on government unemployment benefits that barely cover her rent.

“So I’ve had to use super(annuation) and now I’ve got no super left,” she said.

Friends of Ms Hill have now launched a GoFundMe to support her while she recovers.

Peninsula Private Hospital is reviewing Ms Hill’s case to check whether the care provided to her was to the appropriate standard. Picture: Jason Sammon

A Peninsula Private spokesperson said the hospital was reviewing Ms Hill’s case to check whether the care provided to her was to the appropriate standard.

“While there are always risks associated with surgery, we have robust processes and safeguards in place to minimise the likelihood of complications occurring following a surgical procedure,” the spokesperson said.

“We sympathise with Ms Hill who experienced a well-recognised complication of the particular procedure she initially underwent.

“We wish Ms Hill well as she recuperates and we have reached out to invite her to meet with our executive team should she wish to discuss any aspects of her care.”