Heart surgeon Mark Plunkett, who was recently hired by University of Florida, left a mystery in his wake when he left the University of Kentucky, where he was the sole open-heart surgeon for Kentucky Children's Hospital. That program was suspended after a series of babies died or had unexpected complications.
A reporter from the Kentucky university's radio station who tried to get data on Plunkett's mortality rate was refused. As CNN reports, the Kentucky attorney general has gone to court to order the university to provide the information.
Dr. Timothy Flynn, the senior associate dean for clinical affairs at UF College of Medicine, told CNN he spoke to Kentucky surgeons who worked for Plunkett and that they reported he performed very well.
The CNN piece includes interviews with families of babies who died.
