Haiba Sonyika

Dr. Haiba Sonyika, M.D., is a female M.D. with over 25 years of experience who practices Obstetrics & Gynecology in Georgia.. In 2004 Sonyika performed a circumcision of a newborn that amputated a large portion of his glans.

On August 27th of 2012 the American Academy of Pediatricians (AAP) presented a new Policy Statement on Circumcision and Technical Report stating that "the benefits outweigh the risks", yet when it comes a complications like this one, the technical report states that "Financial costs of care, emotional tolls, or the need for future corrective surgery (with the attendant anesthetic risks, family stress, and expense) are unknown.

Botched circumcision

In 2004 Sonyika circumcised a one week old baby. The nurse assisting in the circumcision noted excessive bleeding and believed that excess tissue had been removed. In fact, a large portion of his glans penis had been severed. The lawsuit indicated medical negligence in the treatment of the severed tissue, which would have been possible to reattach if proper care and attention had been given within 8 hours. Instead, the tissue was placed in a biohazard bag and left at the nurses’ station. No doctor came in to examine the child after the nurse noted the severed tip. The tissue with the tip in it was eventually sent to pathology. The pathologist’s report confirmed the loss of part of the glans penis. A local pediatric urologist eventually diagnosed the boy with a significant circumcision injury resulting in an iatrogenic hypospadias, a physician-caused condition where the urinary opening is on the underside of the penis.

The lawsuit indicated that the boy and his family would need significant psychiatric counseling at various stages of his life in order to avoid a bad psychological outcome.

The jury found Drs. Sonyika and Dr. Cheryl J. Kendall, the child’s pediatrician, liable and awarded $1,800,000 to the child. The mother was awarded $500,000 for future medical expenses for psychiatric counseling while the boy is a minor. The hospital was not found liable.

Medical malpractice

In 2001 Sonyika attended a birth in which a female baby suffered permanent and catastrophic neurological injuries, including brain damage and other devastating physical and mental injuries as result of negligence. The parents of the baby were entitled to a recovery against the Defendants for all damages allowed by law.