Our client, John Simon was at work when he experienced a sudden, sharp cold pain in his foot. The pain continued to escalate to the point where John admitted himself to Kettering General Hospital A&E department. No-one in A&E checked for pulses in his main leg arteries. This was a significant omission, as it turned out that John was I suffering from severe ischemia (a lack of blood flow).
Prompt treatment is essential to improve blood flow, but it took more than a month to finally diagnose critical ischemia. By this time John was suffering from necrosis (the death of body tissue as a result of too little blood flowing to the tissue), of the toes and a mid-foot amputation was performed. Unfortunately the necrosis spread to his calf and this lead to a full below the knee limb amputation a month after the first amputation.
After the amputation John was unable to:
- walk unaided,
- work,
- support his family.
The doctors involved negligently failed to pay attention to test results and to refer John urgently for treatment. The two NHS Trusts involved also failed to properly assess, diagnose and treat John correctly on many occasions.
A claim for delayed diagnosis and treatment was made. The amount of compensation for negligence that results in amputation is usually high to take into account the life changing impact amputation can make on a person’s life, and the ongoing support required. However, John had a pre-existing condition that may have meant amputation would have been required at some future date in any event. This complicated things. The case was nearing trial when the defendants made an offer of £150,000. Given the uncertainties over pre-existing medical conditions, we advised our client to accept.
The award helped John to fund his care, physiotherapy and prosthetics and assisted with his move to accommodation more suitable for him and his family’s needs.
Disclaimer
This information is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. It is recommended that specific professional advice is sought before acting on any of the information given. © Shoosmiths LLP 2024
