British mother died during botched weightloss surgery in Turkey after seeking treatment abroad because she couldn’t afford Ozempic, inquest hears

A mother bled to death after a failed stomach operation in Turkey because she could not buy a new course of Ozempic, an inquest has heard.

Glamorous driving test examiner Janet Savage, 54, had traveled to the country to undergo stomach surgery, which would help her lose weight, the coroner was told.

She paid £2,750 for a package including flights and the medical procedure through a health tourism company after her body mass index (BMI) reached a score of 30.7.

According to the NHS, a healthy woman’s BMI should be between 18.5 and 24.9. Ms Savage fell into the borderline obese category.

The North Wales Coroner’s Court heard that Mrs Savage had been prescribed a weight loss treatment Ozempic at one point but was unable to buy it privately – so she turned to surgery to help her lose three stone.

An inquest found that surgical instruments had been inserted into Mrs Savage (pictured) during the weight-loss procedure and her aortic artery had ruptured.

She booked the trip in July last year, just 24 hours after first contacting the health tourism company, and arranged to hit the road the following month.

But after traveling to Turkey on August 5 to undergo the procedure at Ozel Rich private hospital in Antalya, things went drastically wrong.

Surgical instruments were placed in Mrs. Savage and her aortic artery ruptured.

Coroner Kate Robertson said: ‘Unfortunately it appears that major artery trauma occurred during the procedure which the surgeon said was repaired (but) Janet went into cardiac arrest.’

Mrs Savage died in the hospital’s intensive care unit in the early hours of August 6 last year and her body was formally identified by husband Andrew.

Ms Robertson heard evidence including a post-mortem examination held after Ms Savage’s body was flown back to Britain.

Pathologist Muhammad Aslam, who performed the procedure at Glan Clywd Hospital, St Asaph, found the cause of death was due to acute bleeding from the abdominal aorta.

At today’s hearing in Caernarfon, the coroner delivered a narrative conclusion: ‘She underwent gastric surgery in Turkey on August 5, 2023. An injury occurred during the procedure, with attempts to recover. She died the next day.”

Alison Ergun, client administrator for Warwickshire-based health tourism company Regenesis Health Travel, said in a statement that Ms Savage had stated in a message to her that she was “a little concerned” about the operation.

For reassurance, she was given a web link to talk to other patients, and the booking was made.

But Ms Ergun said of the operation: ‘There was a complication and she had stopped breathing in the first few minutes of the operation.’

Ms Ergun said Ms Savage’s family arrived in Antalya later that day.

She told how she accompanied them from the airport to the hospital. Through an interpreter, Ms Savage’s relatives were told there had been “severe internal bleeding” and that she had suffered a heart attack.

Mrs Savage died in the hospital’s intensive care unit in the early hours of August 6 last year and her body was formally identified by husband Andrew.

Ms Ergun said the family “thanked” her for her efforts and she then escorted them back to the airport.

Relatives of Ms Savage, a mother of two from Bangor, Gwynedd, chose not to attend the inquest’s conclusion.

Ms. Robertson translated the notes of the surgeon who performed the botched operation, Dr. Ramazan Azar.

He described how at the start of the operation there had been a 3-4mm ‘defect’ in the aorta, resulting in catastrophic bleeding.

He said the aorta was repaired and the surgery to adjust the gastric sleeve itself was stopped.

Intensive care medical staff were subsequently unable to find a heartbeat and Ms Savage was pronounced dead.

Ms Robertson said she had considered the evidence as thoroughly as she could, but added: ‘As with many deaths abroad, the various legal processes mean that the evidence given to us may not be to the extent we would have in this country. .’

The NHS is advising people considering surgery abroad to consider ‘potential risks’ due to differences in safety standards.

The website states: ‘It is important to do your research if you are considering having cosmetic surgery abroad.

‘It may cost less than in Britain, but you have to weigh the potential savings against the potential risks. The safety standards may not be that high.

‘No operation is without risk. Complications can occur after surgery in the UK or abroad.’

The coroner passed on her condolences to Mrs Savage’s family.

Ms Savage had been employed as an examiner by the Driving and Vehicles Standards Agency in Bangor and had passed hundreds of drivers in her eight years as a driving test examiner.

In May last year, she had been promoted to “recruitment ambassador” as an executive officer at the government agency.