Medical Negligence

$10 million

Sam suffered catastrophic brain injuries due to an improper surgery

Sam suffered catastrophic brain injuries, resulting in neurological impairment and quadriplegia because the hospital failed to appropriately treat him during surgery.

Before the surgery, Sam was healthy, married with children and was in good professional employment. After the surgery, he was unable to speak, walk, swallow and required 24-hour care. He was unable to look after himself or manage his own affairs. The burden of looking after him and the family fell to his wife. Eventually, it was Sam’s wife who contacted us and asked us to investigate the possible claim against the hospital.

One of our most senior Medical Negligence lawyers took the case and began contacting our extensive network of highly skilled medical experts. The Medical Negligence team gathered evidence from these experts that the hospital breached their duty of care and negligently caused our client’s injuries. Once we had all the evidence we needed, we commenced proceedings in the Supreme Court, where the hospital and its legal team vigorously defended itself.

We successfully defeated their defence and rebutted the majority of medical assumptions relied upon by the hospital. Mindful of the substantial expenses associated with litigation, we arranged for the parties to participate in a Mediation to attempt to resolve the matter without proceeding to a hearing in court.

At the mediation, we negotiated a $10 million settlement for Sam and his family.

$4.5 million

Rebecca approached us after a major firm advised her she did not have a viable claim

Rebecca was 35 years old when she developed a kidney stone which was scheduled for surgery. Prior to the surgery, she was admitted to a Melbourne public hospital with an infection and then developed a pulmonary embolism. In the meantime, Rebecca developed neuropathy in her lower limbs and required extensive hospitalisation. By the time Rebecca was discharged from the hospital, she was unable to walk and confined in a wheelchair.

Rebecca was a paraplegic when she was discharged from the hospital. Her feet now turn in at right angles at her ankles. She may require amputation in the future. Rebecca had a long history of severe asthma and anorexia. We qualified a number of experts to comment on the nature and extent of Rebecca’s injuries and disabilities.

We accepted the claim even though it had been rejected by another major law firm and even though the limitation period was about to expire.

The matter was settled at a mediation for $4.5 million. Rebecca would have received no compensation had she accepted the advice of her former solicitors. While no amount of money can properly compensate Rebecca for the suffering she has endured, at least Rebecca can now achieve some level of comfort and support for the remainder of her life.

$2.5 million

Nadia was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy after negligence at birth 13 years ago

Nadia was 13 years old when she came to us, having been diagnosed with cerebral palsy. After investigating her claim, the Medical Negligence Team found that there were multiple failures on part of the midwife present and hospital staff generally.

When Nadia was born she was blue in appearance. She did not move or cry. An attempt was made to revive her, which eventually succeeded. When she was about 18 months old, Nadia was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy.

Nadia’s mother felt that there had been negligence on the part of the hospital, and she wanted to secure Nadia’s future for her. She came to us and we commenced court proceedings in the Supreme Court of NSW.

Our Medical Negligence team got to work with our extensive network of obstetric experts. We gathered evidence that her mother’s labour was allowed to go for too long, that the baby was in distress but that this was ignored and that no x-rays were performed before the birth.

Our team consulted with other medical experts to ascertain Nadia’s present and future needs. One of the difficulties we faced was Nadia’s age. A child psychiatrist who examined Nadia on our behalf said that it was too early to determinate what will happen to Nadia in the future with respect to her condition. Court proceedings needed to be paused temporarily to ensure that proper reports were obtained regarding Nadia’s future.

After approximately a year and a half, Nadia was re-examined by the same child psychiatrist who provided a comprehensive report dealing with her future needs and limitations. After this and other reports became available, court proceedings were ‘unfrozen’ and we successfully settled Nadia’s claim for $2.5 million.

$2.5 million

Ebony was left paraplegic after an attempted suicide

Ebony was 38 years old when she attempted suicide by jumping from a third floor balcony. Ebony did not die in the fall but suffered a crush fracture of her vertebrae and as a result is paraplegic. Ebony had a long history of mental illness and a few days before her fall she had been admitted to a public hospital after another failed suicide attempt in which she had taken a vast quantity of Valium. The hospital initially made an involuntary treatment order under the Mental Health Act but then removed the order early the next day. Ebony was discharged home to the care of her daughter who was then only 17 years of age. Ebony was still under the effects of the Valium that she had taken the day before.

The paraplegia combined with her mental health issues has made her life extremely difficult. She requires assistance with most activities of daily living, particularly showering and transport. She requires assistance with her personal care and housework. She has been lucky to have the support of her mother and daughter who have helped her enormously with her injuries.

Our Medical Negligence team qualified three expert psychiatrists to comment on the treatment Ebony received at the hospital. The experts said she should not have been discharged into the care of a 17-year old. Further, they commented that the follow-up, in which a community nurse visited Ebony daily, was also inadequate given what had occurred.

The matter was very hard-fought by the defendant. We fought a number of interlocutory applications by the defendant seeking orders to Amend the Statement of Claim and plead the limitation periods. The matter had two mediations and resolved at the second mediation for the sum of $2.5 million inclusive of costs. This was an excellent result given the complexities of the issues and the expert evidence served by the defendant. Ebony and her family were very grateful for the result which will make her life more comfortable in the future.

$900,000

Lily claimed for psychiatric injuries caused by the death of her husband

Lily was only 53 years old when her husband, Albert, died in tragic circumstances at a public hospital. Albert had attended the hospital with calf pain, shortness of breath and tachycardia. He was discharged after about 2 ½ hours. The next day he presented again with similar symptoms. CT angiogram was performed that showed evidence of a significant major pulmonary embolism and right heart strain. Unfortunately, Albert then suffered a cardiac arrest and died in the hospital.

Lily suffered severe depression and a Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of Albert’s death. We qualified an expert emergency physician to comment on the treatment Albert had received on the two presentations to the emergency department. The expert confirmed that had investigations been carried out Albert would not have suffered the heart attack and died.

Our Medical Negligence team made a claim for Lily’s psychiatric injury and for the loss of financial support and domestic services she would have received from Albert had he survived a normal life expectancy.

The matter was resolved at a mediation for the sum of $900,000 inclusive of costs. Although Albert was 63 years of age at the time of his death, he had a high earning job with Blue Scope Steel and expected to work until the age of 70. He provided extensive domestic services to Lily including transporting her to and from work. Although no amount of compensation can properly compensate for the loss of life, Lily was satisfied with the ultimate result.

$850,000

Dentist performed tooth extraction poorly causing significant consequences

Liam was 47 years old when he attended a dentist with an infected tooth. Liam had undergone radiotherapy 10 years earlier for mouth cancer. Another dentist had told him previously that before having a tooth extracted he needed hyperbaric oxygen treatment to strengthen the bone. The dentist extracted the tooth without requiring Liam to have a course of hyperbaric treatment. He failed to perform the extraction properly and failed to provide proper follow-up. Liam attended a major public hospital because his infection was not healing. He was again sent away with antibiotics but with no proper plan for follow up.

Liam suffered osteoradionecrosis in his jaw, meaning the bone in his jaw died. He required his necrotic jaw to be removed and replaced with a bone graft. The bone graft was provided by the fibula in his right leg. As a result of jaw surgery, Liam suffered severe scarring and facial deformity. The loss of the fibula in his right leg has caused severe disability with walking and mobility. As a result, Liam was unfit for his pre-injury work as a motor mechanic. Liam also suffered severe depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder because of his severe injuries.

Expert evidence established that there was a breach of duty of care by the dentist in the way the tooth extraction was performed and in respect of inadequate follow-up. This also extended to the hospital.

The matter was settled for the sum of $850,000 plus a significant allowance for Liam’s legal costs. Both the dentist and the hospital contributed to the settlement.

$750,000

Elizabeth was negligently discharged from hospital after havinga stroke.

Elizabeth was 66 years old when she was taken by ambulance to a public hospital in regional New South Wales. She had become dizzy, suffered a right sided headache behind the eye and loss of function down her left side. She was taken to hospital but discharged 2 ½ hours later. The next day she again collapsed at home and an ambulance was again called and she was taken to the same hospital. She was then transferred to a second hospital where an MRI showed that she had suffered an acute stroke. As a result of the stroke, Elizabeth suffered a brain injury with loss of strength on her left side. She also suffered frequent headaches, blurred vision, impaired speech and difficulty concentrating.

Our Medical Negligence team qualified an expert emergency physician who confirmed that Elizabeth had not received adequate treatment during her first presentation to the hospital. There had been an incorrect diagnosis and if Elizabeth had been properly diagnosed and treated with medication then she would not have suffered the second stroke.

Despite Elizabeth’s age and the fact that there was no claim for economic loss, Elizabeth’s claim was settled at mediation for the sum of $750,000.

$735,000

Hospital staff fail to recognise signs of foetal compromise during birth

Sarah suffered injury at birth due to shoulder dystocia. Shoulder dystocia occurs when the baby’s shoulder gets stuck behind the mother’s pubic bone during birth and creates depravation of oxygen. Although Sarah suffered severe foetal hypoxia at birth and was clinically dead for approximately 10 minutes, she has had a good recovery and shows only mild intellectual deficits.

Our Medical Negligence team gathered evidence from many medical experts to support Sarah’s claim, particularly an expert professor in obstetrics and gynaecology who said that the hospital staff had failed to recognise signs of foetal compromise during the delivery and had not reacted adequately to the poor progress of the labour.

In February 2020, Sarah’s claim was resolved shortly after mediation for the sum of $550,000 plus an allowance for part of Sarah’s legal fees in the sum of $185,000.