The remaining members of a family touched by tragedy due to hospital negligence have been paid compensation for their loss.

Bethany Bowen, five, was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, for a routine operation on her spleen in July 2006.

However, unbeknown to her parents Claire and Richard, the surgeon performing the operation was a trainee and the team had decided to use an untested piece of equipment on the child, the Daily Mail reports.

Bethany died on the operating table from a ruptured aorta. Tragically, due to stress, her father died of a heart attack 19 months later.

Claire Bowen launched legal action against the hospital, claiming: "If it hadn’t been for the arrogance of the surgeons involved, Bethany would still be alive."

The trust responsible for the hospital recently admitted clinical negligence and has now paid Claire and her two young sons £10,000 as an acknowledgement of their loss.

John Radcliffe Hospital is Oxfordshire’s main accident and emergency site and is the largest of the trust’s hospitals.