1st Claims

When we are in ill-health, we put our faith and trust in medical professionals to help and comfort us through what could be a very distressing time. Under extreme pressure on a daily basis, medical professionals are like anyone else, and can make mistakes, often without realising them, until it’s too late.

Below are some of the most devastating medical negligence cases to date:

Wrong Leg Removal

During an amputation procedure in 1995, surgeon at the University Community Hospital in Tampa mistakenly removed the wrong leg of patient, 52 year-old Willie King. It is believed that the wrong leg was prepped for the operation. During the surgery it became apparent that the surgeon and his team were amputating the wrong leg, however it was too late to rectify.

As a result of the surgeon’s negligence, King received $900,000 compensation from the University Community Hospital and a further $250,000 from the surgeon who performed the operation.

This medical negligence case prompted a new wave of precautionary measures at the Tampa hospital to prevent any other devastating cases happening in the future.

Healthy Lung Removal

In 1995, Lawrence Ball underwent a lung removal operation after being diagnosed with lung cancer. After complaining to his doctor of chest pains, Ball was referred to NHS Grampian who later told Ball that his left lung had a cancerous tumour. The operation to remove the tumour took place in Aberdeen’s Royal Infirmary. Sadly, Ball’s ordeal wasn’t over. After the operation, Ball was told by surgeons that there were no traces of cancer in his lung and the removal was a complete mistake.

Originally a fire-fighter, 58 year-old Mr Ball has lost his job as a result of the operation as well as many healthy years of retirement.

Birth Injury

In 2012, 11 year-old Milly Evans received £10.8 million in compensation after suffering from devastating injuries at birth, thought to be one of the highest medical negligence pay-outs to date. In 1991, Milly was born in Lincoln County Hospital where she was transferred to the neo-natal unit, later undergoing resuscitation and also suffering from seizures.

Parents Andy and Kate Evans believe that if Milly’s heart had been properly monitored, nurses would have been able to spot her fetal distress sooner, allowing Milly to be delivered earlier, avoiding the catastrophic injury she suffered.

United Lincolnshire Hospital NHS Trust offered a complete apology to Milly Evans at the High Court, taking full responsibility for Milly’s injury.

Milly suffers from cerebral palsy and requires 24 hour care. She is unable to speak and can only communicate using a sophisticated eye-gaze machine. Confined to a wheelchair Milly needs help with every aspect of daily living.

Anesthetic Awareness

Although extremely rare and almost never heard of, anesthetic awareness is one of the biggest phobias for patients about to undergo surgery. Anesthetic awareness causes the patient to enter an altered state of consciousness, causing them to feel everything.

Unfortunately for 73 year old Baptist Minister Sherman Sizemore, he found himself fully conscious 16 minutes into his operation, unable to communicate or move. It is believed that anesthesiologists caring for Sizemore did not administer the appropriate drugs which would render him unconscious.

After the unthinkable ordeal, Sizemore suffered from severe traumatic stress and excruciating pain unable to shut out the horrifying ordeal that haunted him. Sadly two weeks after the operation, Sizemore committed suicide.

Anesthetic awareness can have profound effects on patients, often lasting the rest of their lives. Due to traumatic stress, patients are haunted by doubts that the pain they experienced was real. This causes many patients to suffer in silence, avoiding telling doctors, family and solicitors of what they had experienced.

Deliberate Medical Negligence – Harold Shipman (Dr.Death)

This is probably one of the worst cases of medical negligence, simply because the negligence was inflicted on purpose. Over the course of his career, it is believed that Dr Shipman murdered more than 250 people; approximately 80% of his victims were women.

Dr Shipman was convicted in Preston Court in 2000 for the murder of 15 elderly patients with lethal injections of morphine. This conviction triggered a whole new investigation more horrifying than anyone could have ever imagined.

Shipman later committed suicide in his cell at Wakefield Prison in 2004.

Author: Nicholas Jervis