May 20th, 2011
In 2002 *Mr Smith* began to suffer from breathing difficulties and irregular heartbeats. He visited his GP on a number of occasions and was referred to hospital. The hospital carried out an ECG and it was confirmed that Mr Smith did have irregular heartbeats but there was no explanation given for this. He was prescribed beta blockers which settled the symptoms.
However, later that year Mr Smith was again admitted to hospital with similar symptoms but much worse. Tests were carried out and Mr Smith was diagnosed with emphysema. Mr Smith was taken off beta blockers and put on alternative medication to help with breathing. He was also referred for sessions with the respiratory doctor every six months.
In August 2003 Mr Smith was referred to the cardiology department as he was suffering severe pain in his heart. Another ECG was carried out and showed that he was suffering sinustachycarida due to using a broncodilator. Medication was given to alleviate the symptoms.
In Summer 2007 Mr Smith had his last appointment with the respiratory doctor and was informed that he would need oxygen at home to assist his breathing.
In December 2007 Mr Smith suffered a chest infection and was admitted to hospital for a period of four days where he was given antibiotics and had tests which again showed an irregular heartbeat.
In Mid January 2009, Mr Smith returned to hospital suffering a further chest infection for which he was prescribed antibiotics. A chest x-ray was carried out and did not show any abnormalities.
In June 2008, Mr Smith was having great difficulty breathing and his wife telephoned for an ambulance. The paramedics examined Mr Smith at his home and refused to take him to hospital, advising that he should carry on with his antibiotics and oxygen.
Two days later, Mr Smith awoke in a worse condition. He was so weak that he could not dress himself and was fighting for breath. An ambulance was called and he was taken to hospital by the paramedics. Mrs Smith was advised that Mr Smith should have been taken to hospital two days previously when Mr Smith had first become ill.
Mr Smith underwent a number of tests and investigations and was diagnosed with a weakness of the heart muscle, which was slightly enlarged. Mrs Smith was advised that Mr Smith was in a critical condition and his condition was advanced. Two days later scans were carried out which showed that Mr Smith’s organs were failing and the machine supporting him was shut down.
Mrs Smith made a written complaint to the Ambulance Trust who responded admitting that the paramedics should have taken Mr Smith’s condition more seriously and carried out tests when they were first called out to him in June 2008.
Mrs Smith contacted Ian Kirwan, a specialist in clinical negligence matters at Pryers Solicitors, in December 2008.
Investigations commenced and a medical report was obtained from a Consultant Cardiologist which was not supportive. However, the admissions made following Mrs Smiths complaint were used to put allegations to the Ambulance Trust. The Defendant responded admitting that Mr Smith should have been taken to hospital two days earlier, but denying that this had any effect on Mr Smith’s health. An offer to settle was made for £10,000 which Mrs Smith was happy to accept.
The Defendant also paid all of Mrs Smith’s legal costs so she kept 100% of her compensation
Tags: Ambulance, Antibiotics, Appointment, Beta Blockers, Breathing Difficulties, Cardiology Department, Chest Infection, Chest X Ray, Difficulty Breathing, Ecg, Emphysema, Irregular Heartbeat, Irregular Heartbeats, Medication, Mr Smith, Occasions, Oxygen, Paramedics, Severe Pain, Six Months
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
February 18th, 2011
In January 2005 Jill went to her GP complaining of vaginal discharge and bleeding.
She was referred to hospital for investigations. At the hospital a number of investigations were carried out in April 2005, including a cervical smear test. The cervical smear was reported as normal. In fact the test was abnormal. It showed evidence of a severe cell change.
In November 2006 Jill returned to her GP complaining of heavy periods and inter-menstrual bleeding. She was referred to the hospital and was seen later that month. Following investigations by a specialist Jill was diagnosed with cervical cancer.
Jill underwent radiotherapy and chemotherapy in January and February 2007 and brachytherapy in February 2007. Jill then also started to suffer anxiety and depressive illness for which she was treated with medication and counselling.
It appeared that Jill was responding well to treatment and was referred back to the care of her original hospital.
However, in January 2008 Jill returned to her GP complaining of back pain and was referred to hospital for investigations. These investigations revealed that her cancer had returned, and spread to her lungs.
Jill underwent surgery on the lung during August 2008 and surgery by way of pelvic exoneration in October 2008, following which she required a permanent colostomy and had to self-catheterise.
Jill became unable to work and required a high level of care and assistance from her family.
Jill contacted Alex McKnight, a clinical negligence specialist at Pryers to investigate what had happened and help her with her future needs. Her case was funded by a ‘no win no fee’ agreement.
Our investigations showed that the cervical smear test done by the hospital in April 2005 had been reported wrongly and that had this been reported correctly Jill would have been treated by way of hysterectomy, and, on the balance of probabilities, would have led to a complete cure. We obtained expert evidence from a Consultant in Clinical Oncology
The Defendant admitted in June 2009 that they had breached their duty of care owed to Jill but did not admit that this breach of duty had led to Jill’s subsequent pain and additional treatment.
The Defendant eventually admitted that its breach of duty had caused Jill’s ongoing problems and offered an interim payment of £30,000 and asked for information to consider the full value of the claim, which we provided.
On the basis of this information the Defendant offered £235,000 to settle the claim in October 2010, which Jill was happy to accept.
The Defendant also paid all of Jill’s legal costs so she had nothing to pay throughout the case or at the end.
Tags: Anxiety, Back Pain, Balance Of Probabilities, Brachytherapy, Cervical Cancer, Cervical Smear Test, Chemotherapy, Clinical Negligence, Colostomy, Consul, Depressive Illness, Expert Evidence, Heavy Periods, Hysterectomy, Investigations, Lungs, Medication, Menstrual Bleeding, Pelvic Exoneration, Vaginal Discharge
Posted in Clinical Negligence News | No Comments »
March 14th, 2010
Pyers solicitors recently acted on behalf of a man who sustained injury and damage to his eyes after taking medication prescribed for an unrelated condition. There were issues with regard to the standard of care he received in relation to the poorly monitored prescription of this medication, and also with regard to the failure by his optician to diagnose the signs of macular damage at a time when further deterioration may have been prevented. The Claimant received a substantial sum in settlement of his claim for the damage sustained and to compensate him for the fact that he could no longer continue in his job.
Tags: Claimant, Clinical Negligence, Damage Claim, Deterioration, Eye Damage, Failure, Issues With Regard, Job, Medication, Optician, Signs, Solicitors, Substantial Damages, Substantial Sum, Wins
Posted in Success Stories | No Comments »
October 15th, 2009
A widow is considering legal action against an NHS trust after her husband died following an operation.
Joseph Gill, 58, was admitted to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary in July for a lung cancer operation. However, he was given the wrong medication six times when staff mixed him up with another patient and he fell ill.
Despite this, he was taken in for the surgery to receive part of his lung on July 7th. Complications arose and he died on July 16th.
Eileen Gill, 55, said she blames NHS Grampian for her husband’s death and claims the nurses had called him George and repeatedly given him medication meant for a heart patient.
She is now demanding answers in order to consider pursuing a clinical negligence compensation claim.
"We’ve got a solicitor but can’t do anything until we know what drug he was given," she commented.
A spokesperson for NHS Grampian denied that the medication mix-up had led to Mr Gill’s death but said that lessons had been learnt since the mistakes.
This comes after research from the Care Quality Commission revealed that one in nine of the 392 NHS trusts in the UK performed badly or failed to improve in the last year.
Tags: Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Cancer Operation, Care Quality, Clinical Negligence Compensation, Compensation Claim, Grampian, Heart Patient, Joseph Gill, July 7th, Lung Cancer, Medication, Mr Gill, Nhs Trust, Nhs Trusts, Nurses, Quality Commission, Six Times, Solicitor, Spokesperson
Posted in Clinical Negligence News | No Comments »
September 7th, 2009
Mistakes by NHS staff in prescribing and administering drugs cause moderate or severe harm to more than 220 patients every month, according to a new report.
Figures compiled by the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) show that there were 86,085 reported medication mistakes during 2007, although it is believed only around ten per cent of incidents were recorded.
The vast majority of the mistakes resulted in little or no harm to patients. However, 37 patients died as a result of medication incidents, 63 suffered severe harm and 2,710 errors caused moderate harm.
NPSA statistics showed that 41 per cent of the most serious incidents were caused by mistakes in the administration of drugs, while 32 per cent resulted from prescribing mistakes.
Responding to the NPSA’s report, Norman Lamb, health spokesman for the Liberal Democrats, called on NHS officials to ensure systems to protect patient safety are in place.
He added: "Settling claims for damages costs the NHS nearly £1 billion per year, which could be spent on patient care."
Tags: 1 Billion, Administration Of Drugs, Damages, Deaths, Health, Lead, Liberal Democrats, Medication, Medication Mistakes, National Patient Safety, National Patient Safety Agency, Nhs, Norman Lamb, Npsa, Patient Care, Patient Safety Agency, Spokesman, Statistics
Posted in Clinical Negligence News | No Comments »
