Surgery shock

Will Mbali's ER mistake be the end of her medical career?

- SANUSHA SHAMDUTT

Durban Gen

It’s no secret that Mbali (Nelisiwe Sibiya) is one of the best doctors at Durban General and she’s not afraid to let everyone know. But this proud doctor suddenly finds herself in the middle of a high-profile spectacle when she messes up the surgery of a popular pop star. “The celebrity comes into Durban General for a routine appendectomy operation, but while performing the surgery an exhausted Mbali dozes off and strikes an artery. Unable to stop the bleeding, Mbali’s patient dies on the operating table,” says Nelisiwe. Ouch!

FACING THE CONSEQUENCES

An anguished Mbali comes out of the frying pan that is the operating room and she’s thrown straight into the fire. A media volcano turns her into public- enemy number one and no one is being harder on her than herself, says Nelisiwe. “She takes the loss extremely hard, because for a few moments before the surgery, she and her celebrity patient had a connection. They connected over their shared love of music and Mbali felt as if they had a lot in common. She feels that she has failed her singer-patient.”