What happens when a neurosurgeon is so dangerously unskilled that other surgeons question whether he’s even a real doctor?

In this episode of AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable, Kay Van Wey sits down with respected neurosurgeon Dr. Martin Lazar for one of the most candid conversations yet about Dr. Death, residency failures, and why the system meant to protect patients simply didn’t.

Dr. Lazar shares how he first heard the “hair-raising” stories about Christopher Duntsch, what he saw when he reviewed the cases, and why the complications weren’t just bad outcomes—they were profound negligence no trained neurosurgeon could ever justify. From wrong-level surgeries to damaged spinal cords and preventable deaths, he explains exactly where things went catastrophically wrong.

Kay and Dr. Lazar also dig into the bigger questions:

1. How did a neurosurgical residency graduate someone so dangerously unprepared?
2. Why did the Texas Medical Board fail to act for so long?
3. What forced the American Board of Neurological Surgery to change its rules?
4. And why hasn’t the rest of medicine followed?

This is a deeply personal, eye-opening episode about accountability, culture, and the urgent need to reform residency training and patient-safety systems. Dr. Lazar’s message is clear: there’s unfinished business—and lives depend on fixing it.

00:38 – Introducing Dr. Martin Lazar

02:00 – Dr. Lazar’s career and passion for neurosurgery

04:25 – How Dr. Lazar first heard about Christopher Duntsch

07:10 – Early warnings ignored by the Texas Medical Board

10:05 – Reviewing the cases: “Profound negligence” vs. bad outcomes

13:45 – Wrong-level surgeries, misdiagnoses, and catastrophic harm

17:00 – The cervical case where Duntsch reamed the spinal cord

19:40 – Anatomy mistakes no neurosurgeon should ever make

22:05 – Preventable patient death from a lacerated iliac artery

24:40 – The residency program: conflicts of interest & failed training

29:15 – How the Duntsch case forced neurosurgery to change its rules

32:50 – Why other specialties haven’t followed suit

35:30 – The broken National Practitioner Data Bank

38:00 – Why major reform needs patient-led pressure

41:10 – Media attention vs. real systemic change

43:00 – Dr. Lazar’s experience testifying at the criminal trial

46:30 – Why he’s still fighting for reform: “Unfinished business”

Listen to more AdvoKAYte episodes & resources:

https://www.vanweylaw.com/advokayte-podcasts/

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Every patient deserves a safe doctor—and informed patients help change the system.