A South African radiologist with practices countrywide – who is already facing allegations of impairment linked to opioid abuse, and has been charged with firing a gun in a public space – has now been accused of causing the death of a patient at Mooimed Private Hospital in Potchefstroom two years ago.
News24 reports that Dr Pieter Henning, who is facing criminal charges for discharging his firearm in Stellenbosch last year, is also the subject of an inquiry by the Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA) after allegations of impairment linked to opioids.
The HPCSA’s health committee was expected to meet last week in connection with the complaint, lodged by a witness who claims to have seen him in possession of ampoules of the Schedule 6 drug pethidine. He allegedly injected himself before consulting patients, while his resultant behaviour posed a significant risk to safety and professional integrity.
In the latest development, a new complaint has been filed against Henning, claiming that his actions caused the death of a patient at Mooimed Hospital.
According to the complaint to the HPCSA, submitted by an ICU nurse, it took two years to report, as she had been promised by hospital management after the woman’s death that the case would be probed and reported to the HPCSA.
The patient suffered from pleural effusion – an abnormal buildup of excess fluid in the pleural space, referred to as “water on the lungs” – with her urologist requesting the insertion of a pleural drain.
This is a flexible tube inserted into the space between the lung and chest wall to remove trapped air, blood, pus or excess fluid, allowing the lung to re-expand and improve breathing via one-way drainage.
Henning, the face of Keystone Radiology, who has appeared on major TV news channels, had performed the procedure in July 2023.
The nurse said the drain initially appeared to enter the pleural space correctly, with clear fluid escaping and no indication of injury. In her complaint, she said Henning had then struggled to remove the guidewire from the drain.
She alleges that “he pulled at it so hard the wire started to uncoil”.
“He then removed the drain, took a new one, which he tested, before inserting it again. When testing it before insertion, there were no problems sliding the guidewire in and out, so he tried again. The following numerous attempts were increasingly violent and much deeper. I say violent due to the carelessness of pressure and repositioning that occurred.”
After witnessing many pleural drain insertions during her career, the complainant said this “looked more like butchering”.
The nurse alleges Henning eventually cut off the protective safety tip of the pigtail drain – a component designed to prevent internal injury – before reinserting it.
“After doing this, there was a gush of fresh blood pouring from the drain in copious amounts. He became angry and said there must have been a product failure with the pigtail drain.”
Henning allegedly insisted the catastrophe was a result of product failure, but the nurse said the equipment had been tested and functioned normally before insertion.
“He was in a hurry, careless with the patient and with the product he was inserting,” she charged.
“When I left that night, the patient was draining bright, red blood from the pleural drain, haemorrhaging from the damage he inflicted.”
Despite emergency interventions, including medication to stop the bleeding, inotropes and consultations with other doctors, the patient deteriorated rapidly, arrested, and died after resuscitation efforts failed.
The nurse is now calling for an independent investigation, requesting that all hospital documentation – from incident reports to a mortality audit compiled by ICU staff – be formally reviewed in the interest of public safety.
Lenmed Hospital Group spokesperson Michelle Naidoo failed to respond to News24’s questions on whether the incident had been investigated by Mooimed, or whether the HPCSA had been alerted to what had allegedly transpired in 2023.
“Where concerns or complaints are received, these are managed in accordance with our established clinical governance and patient relations practices, and are addressed through the appropriate internal processes to ensure they are handled thoroughly and responsibly,” she said.
HPCSA spokesperson Priscilla Sekhonyana would only confirm that it had been “seized with the (Mooimed) matter and is following the processes in line with the applicable regulations”.
Henning, who lives in Stellenbosch, has yet to respond to News24’s messages.
He previously vehemently denied being a pethidine addict, arguing it was a tactic to bring his competence into question. The allegation of impairment was to be the subject of a two-day inquiry, which was expected to start last Thursday, by the HPCSA’s health committee.
He previously told News24 he was the victim of an attack on his reputation amid a separate civil case. And, according to Henning, the shooting incident, for which he is out on R1 000 bail, had been a result of him being “distressed”.
He denied being “highly intoxicated” that November night as alleged by the State, but said he had had a few drinks that evening. He had served as a medical officer in the SANDF for eight years, and when he got lost on the night in question, he claimed to have become “really anxious” as it reminded him of “close-quarter battle”.
He had fired at the door of a vacant business in Stellenbosch, where he was subsequently arrested for discharging his firearm in a public place and malicious damage to property.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
Stellenbosch doctor in opioid abuse inquiry now charged with gun violation
KZN doctor negligent, liable for brain damage of man with overdose history
Health MEC: Doctors and nurses will be held personally liable for negligence