Medical Negligence Case – Incorrect administering of powerful antibiotic Gentamicin
Added: (Wed Oct 28 2009)
Pressbox (Press Release) -
A 58-year-old client of an Oldham firm of solicitors, Pearson Hinchliffe, has received £575,000 compensation for a hospital blunder that has left him without a job and dependent on care.
Mr. W’s previous medical history includes aortic dissection (which was suffered by an ex-manager of Liverpool called Gerard Houlier) He required emergency treatment for this and a prosthesis was inserted. This made him vulnerable to cardiac infection.
In early 2005 he was admitted to hospital at Rotherham with an infection around his heart. This should have been treated surgically but was in fact treated medically. A powerful antibiotic known as Gentamicin was administered for significantly longer than it should have been.
It is know that Gentamicin causes ototoxicity affecting the inner ears balance function. As the result Mr. W. has sustained vestibular damage which has left him with disequilibrium, nausea, tinnitus, and vertigo. As a consequence he was unable to continue working as an Employment Adviser and has required a good deal of care from his wife.
It was necessary to begin the case in Court. Two offers to settle were rejected and a joint settlement meeting was arranged which led to settlement for the sum of £575,000. This included compensation under the following heads of damage:-
For pain suffering and lost amenity
The cost of care on a past and future basis.
For adaptations to Mr. W’s home in Sheffield.
For provision of more suitable accommodation (Mr. W. plans to move to Kent)
For lost earnings including lost promotion prospects.
Apart from being significantly physical affected by disequilibrium Mr. W. also became depressed and this was also taken into account.
Mr W. is now 58 and is delighted that this settlement will give him and his wife both the money to provide appropriate care and facilities and also some security for the future.
If you have been effectred by the negligence of a medical professional, please call Pearson Hinchliffe Solicitors on 0161 785 3500 or email john.pollitt@pearson-hinchliffe.co.uk.