NZer whose weight loss surgery went wrong in Turkey can’t get refund
A New Zealand woman is seeking recourse after a gastric sleeve surgery performed in Turkey resulted in severe medical complications. Despite the botched procedure and subsequent emergency surgery, the clinic has denied responsibility and refused a refund.
Why it matters
The case highlights the significant health and financial risks associated with medical tourism and the lack of international legal protections for patients.
Manawatū woman Helen Watson needed stomach reconstruction surgery after an operation in Turkey went wrong. Photo / RNZ, Jimmy Ellingham
Helen Watson had gastric sleeve surgery at the Medicana Health Group clinic in Istanbul last year, and was immediately stricken with pain and problems.
Her pleas for a refund from Medicana have so far fallen on deaf ears and she has few options to claw back her money.
For some New Zealanders who head overseas for surgery, the consequences are even worse.
A year ago Helen Watson was in Palmerston North Hospital, barely able to move.
Now recuperating at her Feilding home, she fears her life will never return to what it was like before her September 2025 operation in Turkey , and the resulting major corrective operation she needed earlier this year.
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