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Brain dead man 'wakes up crying' during organ donation surgery

Anthony Thomas "TJ" Hoover was declared brain dead after a cardiac arrest caused by a drug overdose, but reportedly woke up crying as doctors were preparing to harvest his organs at a Kentucky hospital

[Anthony Thomas 'TJ' Hoover was declared brain dead]

This near-tragic medical error sparked federal and state inquiries into the oversight of organ procurement organizations(Image: TikTok)

A bloke who had been pronounced brain dead suddenly awoke from his coma and began weeping just as medics were getting ready to harvest his organs for transplant.

Anthony Thomas "TJ" Hoover was rushed to Baptist Health Richmond Hospital in Richmond, Kentucky, on October 25, 2021, after suffering a cardiac arrest from a drug overdose.

His sister, Donna Rhorer, remembered that doctors informed the family the following day that her brother displayed "no reflexes" and "there was no brain activity, no brain waves." Following the medical team's assessment, the family made the devastating decision to switch off life support.

[Anthony Thomas 'TJ' Hoover was declared brain dead]

He began thrashing and visibly crying on the operating table just as physicians were preparing to remove his organs(Image: TikTok)

Hospital staff then told Hoover's sister and relatives that he had signed up as an organ donor should he die, as per the Express US.

Donna noticed her brother's eyes opening and seeming to follow her family's movements across the room.

However, when she mentioned this to the doctors, they dismissed it as "just reflexes" and "normal thing," which led the family to trust the medical experts' assessment.

[Hoover was discharged from the hospital]

Due to the cardiac arrest and severe drug overdose, he struggles with walking, balance, speech, memory, and vision(Image: TikTok)

She remembered: "We had his honour walk Friday afternoon. During his honour walk, his eyes started opening up.

"He was tracking. His eyes were tracking us around. We were told it was just reflexes, just a normal thing. Who are we to question the medical system?".

Yet as medical personnel prepared to remove Mr Hoover's heart for a transplant, he suddenly reportedly regained consciousness.

[Stock image of a surgeon looking at a tablet in a hospital]

Doctors announced the man dead and even begun the process of organ extraction(Image: Getty Images)

His sister recounted the moment a surgeon emerged from theatre, revealing that Mr Hoover "wasn't ready" for the operation.

Donna informed WKYT News: "Probably about an hour into [the surgery], the doctor came out and got us. He said he wasn't ready. He woke up."

She also disclosed a previously hidden incident: "But we also hadn't been told during his heart catheterisation that morning, he woke up then. If we had known that, then clearly we would have known he wasn't brain dead."

[ECG , Doctor Writing on Glass]

Doctors were not informed about all of Hoover's health issues

Subsequently, medics advised she should take her brother home to keep him comfortable, as his prognosis remained grim.

For three years now, Donna has been looking after her brother.

It wasn't until January that a former Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates (Koda) worker contacted her about Hoover allegedly "thrashing" on the operating table and "crying visibly" at the hospital.

Baptist Health emphasised patient safety as their "highest priority" in a recent statement, stating, "We work closely with our patients and their families to ensure our patients' wishes for organ donation are followed."

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