Recent Cases - Clinical Negligence
Failure to remove a central line guide wire
We have been acting for a client (who is now aged 49) who was unhappy with medical treatment which he received at the old Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) in Swindon during 1995. Briefly, he was under the care of the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford for cardiac like symptoms and during March 2008 he was advised that his doctor had identified a retained central line guide wire which was obstructing his Inferior Vena Cava (IVC). This had been left behind following an earlier procedure at the PMH during 1995. This was partly removed during June 2008 by his doctor at Oxford and he needed to undergo further procedures to remove the remaining piece of wire and he also had to have some stents fitted into his IVC. The retained wire had resulted in irreversible damage to the IVC which would leave him with ongoing symptoms and he would need to be kept under very close surveillance by his doctor at Oxford. Fortunately, he had been able to continue working. Although, the Hospital Trust admitted breach of duty early on in this case, there was a significant difference of opinion on causation ie. what damage had been caused to our client by this negligence. We had to obtain 4 reports from medical experts in different disciplines. Eventually, we were able to reach a settlement without the need to issue proceedings.
S J Edney solicitors obtained compensation of £175,000.00 for this client during 2012
Injury to the right ureter
Our client was aged 35 when she gave birth to her first child at Great Western Hospital by way of an emergency caesarean section during January 2008. She then had to be readmitted to the hospital during February 2008 complaining of leakage of urine from her vagina. She underwent further surgery which revealed a fistula from the right ureter which was causing the leakage. It was our case that the fistula had been negligently caused by suture ligation during the earlier caesarean section. In May 2008, she underwent a procedure for re-implantation of the right ureter. During this period our client had to spend some time away from her young baby which understandably caused her great unhappiness. She has now been left with an unsightly scar on her abdomen. Fortunately, her physical symptoms have resolved. A letter of claim was submitted on our client’s behalf to the Hospital Trust and their solicitors denied liability. They maintained that she had been unlucky and had suffered from a “recognised complication” of this type of procedure. Proceedings were issued at Swindon County Court and the parties were then able to reach a settlement.
S J Edney solicitors obtained compensation of £30,000.00 for this client during 2011
Faulty medical appliance
We acted for a young lady (only aged 21) who had been fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) for an irregular heartbeat. This had been fitted during December 2006. Unfortunately, during early April 2008 the ICD bleeper went off due twice to a defect in one of its leads. She had to undergo further surgery to replace this lead and this left her with some additional scarring. This also caused her to suffer from a major depressive episode which fortunately with therapy could be treated. A letter of claim was submitted to the manufacturer of this appliance but they denied liability. Proceedings had to be issued at Swindon County and shortly afterwards the parties were able to agree upon a settlement.
S J Edney solicitors obtained compensation of £14,500.00 for this client during 2011
Avoidable death
In this sad case, we acted for the husband at the Inquest into his wife’s death. Briefly, on the 22 December 2008, she took an overdose of paracetamol tablets. She took the first 6 tablets at 8.30am and a further 8 tablets at 10.30am. She was then conveyed to Cheltenham General Hospital by ambulance and attended their A & E department where there was a failure on their part to provide her with antidote medication for a staggered overdose. This would have prevented her death on the 24 December 2008. A Narrative Verdict was returned by the Coroner criticising the standard of care which she had received at the hospital. In light of this verdict, we were able to negotiate a settlement of our client’s claim. The claim itself was modest as the deceased was not working at the time and she and her husband were living apart although still married.
S J Edney solicitors obtained compensation of £19,750.00 for our client during 2011
Poor care leading to death of a child
In this tragic case, we acted for a client (aged 28) who was admitted to Great Western Hospital during March 2010 in order to give birth to her first child, a son, who was eventually delivered by way of forceps. He was in very poor health and had to be taken to the special care baby unit. His condition deteriorated and he was later transferred to Southmead Hospital where he sadly died shortly afterwards. A post mortem confirmed that the cause of death was Meconium Aspiration Syndrome. Not surprisingly, his death had a devastating effect on both our client and her husband. The hospital carried out their own investigation into what happened to our client and her son and in their report they identified a number of failings in the standard of care provided. It was our case that these failures had contributed to her baby’s death. A letter of claim was sent to the hospital by our firm and an early offer of settlement was made which was accepted by our client and her husband.
S J Edney solicitors obtained compensation of £35,00.00 for this client during 2011
Delay in diagnosing testicular cancer
In August 2008, one of our clients (aged 25) was referred by his GP to the urology department at Cheltenham General Hospital as he was complaining of a lump on his right testicle and testicular pain. He was seen by one of the doctors who suspected that this was caused by an infection. He gave him some antibiotics to take and made no arrangement to see him again. No ultrasound was arranged. Unfortunately, our client’s lump did not resolve and it was only in December 2008, that his GP arranged for him to have an ultrasound. This revealed a testicular tumour. He then had to undergo surgery and underwent two cycles of chemotherapy to reduce the risk of recurrence. Although the surgery could not have been avoided, it was our case that with an earlier diagnosis, it would not have been necessary for him to have any chemotherapy. The Hospital Trust made no admissions in this case and initially offered to settle his claim for the sum of £3,000.00. This offer was rejected and after threatening to issue proceedings, they increased their offer to a more reasonable amount.
S J Edney solicitors obtained compensation of £19,000.00 for this client during 2011
Failure to repair a hydrocele
We acted for the mother of a young boy (who was only aged 2 at the time) who had been diagnosed with a hydrocele (a fluid collection in the sac surrounding the testicles in the scrotum). He underwent surgery to remedy this problem at Great Western Hospital during November 2005. Unfortunately the wrong surgery was carried out which allowed the hydrocele to recur. He will now have to undergo further surgery to correct this problem and this experience caused him to suffer from post traumatic stress disorder. We were able to negotiate a satisfactory settlement which has been approved by the Court.
S J Edney solicitors obtained compensation of £12,000.00 for this client during 2011
Failing to diagnose a scaphoid fracture
We acted for a young man (aged 22) who injured his left wrist when he fell onto his hand heavily whilst playing football during September 2009. He had his left wrist x-rayed at the Chippenham Minor Injuries unit and these x-rays were then later reviewed at the Royal United Hospital in Bath but unfortunately they missed that he had fractured his left scaphoid. It was only during February 2010, when he returned to his GP complaining of ongoing discomfort, that this fracture was spotted. It was our case that this delay in diagnosis resulted in further treatment and a longer recovery period. The prognosis, however, for a full recovery was encouraging. A letter of claim was sent to the Hospital Trust and the parties were able to agree upon a satisfactory settlement.
S J Edney solicitors obtained compensation of £15,000.00 for this client during 2011
Failure to diagnose brain tumour
In November 2002, one of our clients approached his GP complaining of neurological symptoms. Investigations, including an MRI scan were carried out and multiple sclerosis was suspected. Due to ongoing symptoms including double vision, an MRI scan was carried out at Great Western Hospital during December 2002. The Radiologist suspected that our client may have had a primary brain tumour. Unfortunately, nothing was done by the hospital to follow up this possible diagnosis and for almost 5 years, our client was totally unaware that he had a brain tumour. During this time, he and his wife doubled their mortgage in order to move to a larger house and decided to have a second child. His wife also gave up her career in marketing. It was our case that they would not have made any of these decisions if they had known about the brain tumour. Eventually, in December 2007 following a further MRI scan, he was told about the brain tumour which by now had grown. Since this situation came to light, our client experienced psychiatric problems and frequently became very angry. The prognosis for his tumour is poor and an earlier diagnosis would not have affected the predicted life expectancy. It was our case, however, that this delay in diagnosis resulted in psychiatric damage to our client (and his wife) and in, addition, they sustained ‘economic losses’ which could have been avoided if they had been told of the true situation back in December 2002. Correspondence was exchanged between our firm and the Hospital Trust and after protracted negotiations we were eventually able to agree a settlement.
S J Edney solicitors obtained compensation of £45,000.00 for this client during 2011
