Rachel Tussey, a Ohio mother and TikTok personality, died March 17 after suffering a complication that followedher "mommy makeover" surgery, according to her family's lawyer.
Nearly two weeks after being pulled off life support, Tussey died at a hospice center, lawyer Bernie Layne told The Enquirer. She is survived by her husband and three children. She was 47.
Tussey was documenting her life on TikTok as "midlifeunmuted" leading up to her surgery. She shared positive thoughts aimed at other women in their 40s on her account with over 70,000 followers.
AGoFundMe campaign has been set up for the Tussey family. So far it has raised over $35,000.
What happened
On Feb. 25, Tussey went to the JourneyLite Surgery Center in Evendale to have an abdominoplasty performed by Dr. Shahryar Tork. She even made a short video that day from the bed where she was prepping for the procedure.
"I'm really looking forward to this next chapter," Tussey said. "If you're a praying person, I will absolutely take your prayers."
It was her husband who broke the news to Tussey's followers in a video March 3. In a video that has now been watched 2 million times, he said he talked to his wife after the surgery in the recovery room, but then her face went pale and she became unresponsive.
He said she had just been given dilaudid and fentanyl as painkillers. She was given Narcan, he said, but it didn't work. Tork came back to the center and then Tussey was taken to Bethesda North Hospital.
"She was without oxygen for over six minutes. I was told last night that she's brain dead," Tussey's husband said in the video. "To me, it looks like incompetency. Somebody dropped the ball and killed my wife."
Around March 5, her husband had decided to take her off life support. Her friends remembered her as selfless, generous and community-minded.
"Rachel was truly full of life. She loved adventure, cherished her family deeply, and lived as an example of what community and compassion should look like," her GoFundMe campaign states. "She dedicated countless hours helping others, including organizing donation efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, collecting supplies and personally delivering essential items to those in need."
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As Tussey's story grabbed headlines internationally, Bernie Layne III began representing the family. He vowed to fully investigate what had happened.
"Rachel Tussey suffered a permanent anoxic brain injury, for which she will never recover," Layne said in March 12 statement to The Enquirer. "We will not comment on any aspect of culpability or liability in this matter, but we will instead focus on providing full support to Rachel Tussey's family."
Tussey was taken to hospice facility closer to her home north of Cincinnati after she was taken off life support.
Dr. Tork speaks out
While Tussey was in hospice care, Tork issued a statement March 12.
Tussey was talking and "recovering as expected" before he turned over her care to the staff at the outpatient surgery center, Tork said.
"Rachel's surgery was completed successfully and without complications," Tork wrote. She was in "excellent condition" when she was taken to the recovery room for monitoring overnight, he said.
Tork said he is "heartbroken" for Tussey and her family. He said he doesn't know how this happened.
"Because Rachel was scheduled to remain overnight, her post-operative monitoring was overseen by staff contracted by the independent facility, not by my practice," Tork said. "I have discontinued all procedures at that surgery center."
He also sent along a quote to the press from an apparent family member saying they don't blame Tork for what happened.
In response to his statement, the family said: "While we will not comment on specific issues of liability and culpability surrounding this preventable tragedy, it goes without saying, the action of every medical professional and other entities, related to Rachel Tussey's care, will be thoroughly analyzed and investigated moving forward."
The JourneyLite Surgery Center and its affiliated organizations have not responded to multiple phone calls and messages from The Enquirer.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer:Rachel Tussey has died following 'mommy makeover' surgery complication
