TOP STORY: Surgeon botched breasts: Tribunal

"They believe me!"
Those were some of the first words from the woman who had just found out the surgeon who botched her breast reduction would face disciplinary action.
The family of the 37-year-old woman embraced after the decision was read.
"It's been a long two years," said her grandmother, who had earlier given evidence at the hearing.
The Napier surgeon who performed the surgery in 2005 still has name suppression until his penalty is decided over a telephone conference at the start of July.
After two hours of private discussions at Ormlie Lodge yesterday the Health Practitioners' Disciplinary Tribunal said the charge of professional misconduct had been established.
Only two allegations, that the surgeon didn't provide adequate information about the likelihood of misshapen breasts as a result of the post-operative complications she was experiencing, and the possibility she may have needed hospitalisation if the antibiotics didn't work, had not been established.
But all the others had been established, including allegations he hadn't given her information about the surgery before it went ahead, that he chose an inappropriate technique for her frame, that he did not give her information about the cause of the infection, the likelihood of nipple loss, the possibility antibiotics might not be effective and that re-operation would be required.
The woman's partner said he now had faith in the judicial system but he just wanted "his girl" to be the woman she used to be.
"You should have seen her two years ago. She was so bubbly and didn't care about anything," he said.
The Tribunal had been told during the hearing that since the breast reduction she had lost her confidence, and now slouched and folded her arms to hide her disfigured breasts. Her partner said he wanted people to know they were a normal, hard-working family.
"We pay our mortgage and taxes and get the groceries every two weeks," he said.
"This guy stuffed with our lives."
In her evidence on Wednesday the woman said after her breasts were reduced from size 20GG to a D cup she began to feel unwell and woke up one morning to find her bed saturated in blood and discharge.
Throughout the weeks after the surgery she was changing her dressings every two hours, watched fluid run from her breast onto the shower floor and was forced to endure appointments where the surgeon cut away dead tissue from the wounds.
She had had to have four reconstructive surgeries in Wellington to fix the damage.
The family said they had yet to decide whether to take a civil case against the surgeon.