October 16th, 2009
A woman who was left with a memory span of ten minutes after suffering from a brain haemorrhage has received a multi-million pound payout.
Cristina Malcolm, 41, collapsed in July 2002 with a terrible headache, but was told when she sought medical advice that it was a virus.
In fact, blood had already leaked into her brain and she then went on to suffer a more serious haemorrhage.
Mrs Malcolm was taken to Newcastle General Hospital to have half a litre of blood removed from her brain, but it was too late to reverse the damage and the patient was left brain damaged.
She now needs constant care from her husband Sandy, who describes her as "like a ten-year-old with Alzheimer’s".
GP Dr James Harrison, Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals NHS Trust and Newcastle-upon-Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust all admitted to clinical negligence and have agreed to a compensation payout of £4.46 million.
Settlements for brain damage are typically larger than those for other injuries since the money must cover the long-term care of the patient. Anyone affected by cases such as this may wish to seek legal advice.
Tags: Acute Hospitals Nhs Trust, Brain Damage, Brain Haemorrhage, Clinical Negligence, Constant Care, Darlington, Dr James, Gp, Headache, Hospitals Nhs Trust, James Harrison, Left Brain, Legal Advice, Litre, Long Term Care, Medical Advice, Memory Span, Newcastle General Hospital, Quot
Posted in Clinical Negligence News | No Comments »
September 8th, 2009
Stockton Borough Council has defended its footpath maintenance regime, despite paying out more than £1 million in compensation to people injured in trips and falls on its pavements in the last five years.
Figures obtained by a Freedom of Information request made by the Liberal Democrats showed that local authorities in England paid out £82 million to settle compensation claims related to accidents caused by the poor condition of pavements between 2004 and 2009.
In Stockton, the council made 26 payments totalling £1.2 million – a significantly higher figure than in neighbouring areas, but well short of the £10.2 million paid by Leeds City Council.
The amount may rise, as Stockton Borough Council is still dealing with a further 67 compensation claims.
A council spokesman told the Darlington & Stockton Times that it had implemented a new pavement maintenance regime in order to reduce the number of accidents.
"That has resulted in a dramatic decrease in claims where compensation was made, from 15 claims in 2004-5 to only one in 2008-9," he said.
Tags: 2m, Accident Compensation, Accidents, Darlington, Dramatic Decrease, Footpath Maintenance, Freedom Of Information, Freedom Of Information Request, Leeds City Council, Liberal Democrats, Local Authorities In England, Neighbouring Areas, Pavement Maintenance, Pavements, Quot, Regime, Spokesman, Stockton Borough Council, Stockton Council
Posted in Personal Injury News | No Comments »
March 3rd, 2009
A woman who had worked as a nurse for 20 years but was forced to retire after sustaining an injury at work has been told she will receive £45,000 from the NHS trust responsible for the hospital where she was employed.
Jacqueline Crowe, 46, worked at South Moor Hospital, in Stanley, County Durham, north-east newspaper the Chronicle attests.
She was making beds one day when one of the brakes failed to release. She pulled the bed towards her, but jarred her neck and back badly.
Ms Crowe claimed that she suffers from depression as a result of her injuries and sought legal action against Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals NHS Trust.
In a new development, it has been ruled that the bed brake was faulty and that the trust should have repaired it.
As a result, Ms Crowe will now receive £45,000 in compensation for the pain and suffering she has been caused.
According to figures from the Health and Safety Executive, sickness absence costs the NHS £1 billion a year.
Tags: 1 Billion, Acute Hospitals Nhs Trust, Beds, Brakes, County Durham, Darlington, Depression, Health And Safety, Health And Safety Executive, Hospitals Nhs Trust, Jacqueline, Nurse, Pain And Suffering, Sickness Absence, South Moor, Stanley County, Woman
Posted in Personal Injury News | No Comments »
