Case studies

Cases involving swabs and instruments do still occur notwithstanding attempts to avoid such incidents. As an example, we acted for a client who underwent major pelvic exenteration surgery for vaginal cancer during which a swab was left in situ.

We recently secured £35,000 compensation in an out-of-court settlement for a client who suffered a bowel perforation that could have been prevented.

Our client had suffered from pain in her left knee for a number of years. Following an investigation, she was told she needed to have a total knee replacement (TKR).

We resolved a claim for damages for a family whose son died in hospital only a few hours after his birth. The mother had an uneventful pregnancy with no complications but, within hours of admission, she was noted to be suffering from pyrexia and meconium stained liquor was evident. Oxytocin was given to progress labour and the dosage increased despite a number of indications that its use was contraindicated.

We recently secured £10,000 in an out-of-court settlement for a client who suffered a delay in surgical treatment to remove a blackthorn from his hand which resulted in the amputation of the tip of his thumb.

In this case our client sadly ended up requiring a below knee amputation with reduced life expectancy of between one and two years.

Our client underwent ACL reconstruction to repair damage to the ligament. This involves creating a tunnel through the femur (thigh bone) and tibia (one of the two bones in the lower leg). A graft is then taken from the hamstring, inserted into the tunnel and secured.

We have recently settled a claim against a private spinal surgeon for negligent surgery to correct scoliosis which left our client suffering significant neurological damage. She has long-term severely impaired bladder function.

We have settled a claim on behalf of a client who fell and fractured her ankle. After being examined and having her ankle X-rayed at the A&E department at Frimley Park Hosital, she was reassured that it was only a soft tissue injury and was discharged home to attend physiotherapy.

Our client received morphine for pain relief, but was given a significant overdose that resulted in her suffering a near-death experience and post-traumatic stress disorder.

We secured compensation of £14,000 for a 26 year old woman in respect of the physical and emotional distress she suffered as a result of complications during the birth of her first child.

Our client underwent a laparoscopic cholecystectomy (removal of his gall-bladder) due to multiple gallstones. He was appropriately advised before the operation that it might be necessary to convert to an open procedure, a laparotomy, due to the possibility of internal abdominal adhesions as a result of previous abdominal surgery for bowel cancer.