April 3rd, 2009
A family is seeking the advice of clinical negligence solicitors after a grandfather became the 14th person to die from a superbug at a British hospital.
John Saunders, 66, was admitted to Eastbourne District General Hospital to have a blood clot removed, the Mirror reports.
His official cause of death was pneumonia, but the superbug Clostrodium difficile (C difficile) was listed as a significant contributing factor.
Jane Stanfield, Mr Saunders’ daughter, said the family is shocked and angry, particularly after hospital chief executive Kim Hodgson declared wards safe.
"I went in to see him just hours before he died and he was struggling to breathe and really uncomfortable. A lot more could have been done for him," she commented.
A spokesperson for the hospital said it would investigate if the family wishes to contact its staff.
It was reported last month that 62 cases of the bacteria have been noted at Eastbourne District General Hospital since January and a total of 14 people have now died there as a result.
Tags: Bacteria, Blood Clot, Cause Of Death, Chief Executive, Clinical Negligence Solicitors, Compensation Claim, Contact, District General Hospital, Eastbourne District General Hospital, Hodgson, John Saunders, Mirror, Mr Saunders, Pneumonia, Spokesperson, Stanfield, Superbug, Wards
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March 31st, 2009
The families of 13 people who died as a result of an outbreak of the hospital superbug Clostridium difficile are taking legal action to pursue a possible clinical negligence claim, it has emerged.
According to the Eastbourne Herald, 62 cases of the bacteria have been noted at Eastbourne District General Hospital, where the deaths occurred, since January.
Local MP Nigel Waterman has called for an urgent review into why the hospital has not managed to contain the superbug and the particularly virulent 027 strain, which kills six out of ten people it infects.
The East Sussex Hospitals Trust is now facing legal action from the families of the 13 people who died amid allegations that it did not protect the welfare of its patients.
C difficile mainly affects elderly people who are admitted to hospital to be treated for other problems.
It is an infection of the lower intestine which can cause diarrhoea, ulceration, colitis and perforation of the intestine, which can prove fatal, the Department of Health attests.
Tags: Allegations, Bacteria, Clinical Negligence, Clostridium Difficile, Colitis, Department Of Health, Diarrhoea, District General Hospital, East Sussex, Eastbourne District General Hospital, Eastbourne Herald, Hospital Deaths, Hospital Superbug, Lower Intestine, Negligence Claim, Outbreak, Perforation, Sussex, Waterman, Welfare
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February 5th, 2009
An NHS trust is to pay a woman compensation after her husband died from contracting legionnaires’ disease while in a hospital.
Paul Duncan, 41, was admitted to Eastbourne District General Hospital in 2007 in order to have chemotherapy treatment for cancer, Eastbourne Today reports.
However, while in one of the hospital’s showers, he was exposed to bacteria and went on to contract legionnaires’ disease.
Mr Duncan died two months later. His widow Clare is seeking compensation from East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust, alleging that he could have had a bone marrow transplant and lived for another five years if he had not been exposed to the bacteria.
She claims that the hospital did not take sufficient measures to ensure the showers were clean and had not installed legionella filters.
The trust has now agreed to a compensation settlement, although the exact amount has not yet been decided.
Earlier this month, it was reported that a man had won a court case against tour operator First Choice after contracting legionnaires’ disease while on holiday.
Tags: Bacteria, Bone Marrow Transplant, Cancer, Chemotherapy, Chemotherapy Treatment, Court Case, District General Hospital, East Sussex, Exposed, First Choice, Hospitals, Legionnaires Disease, Measures, Mr Duncan, Nhs Trust, Paul Duncan, Showers, Sussex, Tour Operator, Woman
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February 3rd, 2009
A British man who contracted the potentially fatal legionnaires’ disease has secured a compensation payout for the pain and suffering he was caused.
David Higgs, 47, went on a last-minute holiday to Tenerife with First Choice in September 2002, the Birmingham Mail reports.
However, two days into the break, he began vomiting and hallucinating, as well as suffering from diarrhoea and a fever, after using the Orlando Club Resort hotel’s shower.
He went to hospital in Tenerife, but was told he had gastric flu and was told to rest.
Upon the family’s return, Mr Higgs’s wife Jayne took him to hospital, where he was told that he had legionnaires’ disease and could have died within 12 hours if he had not been brought in.
After he recovered, Mr Higgs fought a long legal battle with First Choice, which has now admitted liability and agreed to a five-figure out of court settlement.
"It isn’t about the money, it is about making First Choice realise they cannot brush something like this under the carpet. This is a moral victory," said Mr Higgs.
Legionnaires’ disease is a potentially fatal form of pneumonia caused by bacteria that can be found naturally in environmental water sources such as rivers, lakes and reservoirs, usually in low numbers.
Tags: Bacteria, British Man, Carpet, Court Settlement, David Higgs, Diarrhoea, Fever, First Choice, Flu, Last Minute Holiday, Legionnaires Disease, Mail, Money, Moral Victory, Pain And Suffering, Pneumonia, Reservoirs, Resort Hotel, Rivers, Water Sources
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January 30th, 2009
A 14-year-old boy has been awarded a compensation payout after being left paralysed by untreated tubercular meningitis.
Jason Goby fell ill with severe headaches in January 2000 and was taken to hospital. However, his condition was not diagnosed until a month later.
The child was left permanently disabled and his father launched legal action against his GP, Dr Barrie Ferguson, claiming negligence, His legal team argued that had Jason been treated straight away, he would most likely have made a full recovery.
Although Dr Ferguson denied liability, a judge at the high court this week ruled that she was negligent on this occasion and ordered her to pay Jason compensation.
The exact sum has not yet been decided, but it is expected to be a substantial payout given the severity of his injuries.
Tubercular meningitis is an infection of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord that is caused by the same bacteria as tuberculosis.
Tags: Bacteria, Barrie, Brain, Ferguson, Goby, Gp, Negligence, Paralysed, Severe Headaches, Severity, Spinal Cord, Tubercular Meningitis, Tuberculosis, Wins
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