Lone Tree, CO – The family of Bart Writer, a 56-year-old man who tragically died during a routine cataract surgery in 2023, has reached a settlement in a lawsuit against the doctors involved in his care.
The incident, which occurred on February 3, 2023, at InSight Surgery Center in Lone Tree, Colorado, has drawn widespread attention due to the bizarre circumstances surrounding his death.
The Routine Surgery That Turned Deadly
Bart Writer underwent what was supposed to be a simple, routine cataract surgery performed by Dr. C. Starck Johnson, the surgeon who had known him for several years, and Dr. Michael Urban, the anesthesiologist.
The surgery, which typically takes about 10 minutes, was so routine that Writer’s wife, Chris, was told she could leave the facility to run errands.
However, things quickly went awry. 11 minutes into the procedure, Bart Writer’s vital signs became abnormal, and he started experiencing respiratory distress. Despite being attached to several monitors, which should have sounded alarms if his vital signs veered from normal levels, the alarms were reportedly silenced before the surgery began.
The lawsuit claimed that no one in the operating room ensured the alarms were audible or turned on prior to the procedure.
The Alleged Distraction: “Music Bingo”
According to the lawsuit, while Bart Writer was in distress, both doctors, Johnson and Urban, were engaged in a game of “music bingo”. The game, which was played using a playlist of songs from the 1970s and 1980s, was reportedly kept score by Dr. Urban, who was the only one able to view Writer’s readings on the monitors.
In the game, the doctors identified bands and musicians by the first letter of their first names, with the goal being to spell out “BINGO.”
As Bart Writer’s oxygen levels plummeted, he reportedly began to turn blue from the lack of oxygen. By the time he was taken to a nearby hospital, it was too late to save him. He was pronounced dead at the hospital, with the cause of death attributed to cardiac arrest.
Family’s Grief and Legal Action
In an interview, Chris Writer, Bart’s widow, expressed her outrage over the situation, stating, “They just didn’t pay attention. Maybe they do so many of these surgeries that it just becomes so routine. I’m just infuriated.” After her husband’s death, Chris received a tip from an unnamed doctor who was not present during the surgery, revealing that both Johnson and Urban had a history of playing “music bingo” during surgeries.
Chris Writer filed a lawsuit against Dr. Johnson, who, in a statement, blamed Dr. Urban for violating proper protocols. Johnson’s attorney emphasized that as the surgeon, Johnson relied heavily on Dr. Urban, the anesthesiologist, to manage the anesthesia, monitor the patient’s condition, and ensure that alarms were functioning properly.
Johnson claimed he was focused on the surgery, using a microscope for the entire procedure, and was unaware of the issues with the monitoring system.
In response, Dr. Urban’s attorney defended his actions, stating that Dr. Urban stands by his treatment of Bart Writer and disagrees with the surgeon’s account of the events. He expressed sympathy for the Writer family’s loss but maintained that his actions on that day were within medical guidelines.
Settlement and Aftermath
Following the legal proceedings, Chris Writer and Dr. Johnson reached a settlement, the terms of which were not disclosed. Dr. Urban is no longer employed at the InSight Surgery Center, having moved out of state since the incident.
