MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A patient at a southwest Miami-Dade County cosmetic surgery clinic died Friday after being transported to the hospital.
Miami-Dade police were called to Mia Aesthetics in the 9300 block Southwest 72nd Street after receiving a call around 11 a.m. of a patient in distress.
After police attempted to resuscitate the patient, the woman was taken to West Kendall Baptist Hospital, where she later died.
Just last week, the Florida Legislature voted to approve a new law that would increase regulations on cosmetic surgery clinics after several patients deaths in South Florida.
The Department of Health said whenever a patient dies or is transported, a licensed physician is required to report the incident to the department withing 15 days. From there, the agency can open an investigation and take further action.
Mia Aesthetics released the following statement late Friday:
"We are deeply saddened to share that an incident occurred at our Miami clinic today resulting in the tragic loss of one of our patients during a surgical procedure. Our condolences, love and support go out to her family during this difficult time.
Throughout our years of operations and thousands of procedures performed, this is the first and only fatality we have endured. Our team is devastated by this tragedy and feels that each and every one of our patients is part of our family. We strive to provide the most advanced plastic surgery treatment for our patients. Each of our surgeons is board-certified or board-eligible by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, and we are constantly evaluating our practices to ensure our patients receive the safest and best care. Despite these practices, serious surgery comes with the risk of rare, unintended and tragic results.
We are fully dedicated to investigating why today’s tragedy occurred. We will be fully transparent with our patients and with the public as more details emerge."