Our Client recovered £2.5 million damages, plus costs, in relation to injury and loss that he was caused to sustain because of poor medical care.
The Plaintiff suffers from inflammatory bowel disease. He received regular medication to treat that condition. That medication had a known risk of precipitating kidney damage and as a consequence of same, those responsible for the patient’s care were obliged to test the patient’s kidney function on an annual basis to ensure that kidney function was being preserved. Blood tests demonstrated deteriorating kidney function, however, the abnormal test report was not recognised by those responsible for the patient’s care, and no action was taken as a consequence. Our Client continued to receive the medication for a further period of a year, at which point he underwent a further test which demonstrated a further deterioration in kidney function.
The medication was stopped immediately, however, kidney function had been permanently damaged.
Had the deterioration in kidney function been recognised when it ought to have been, a year previously, then whilst there would have been some degree of impairment, the patient’s long term kidney health would not have been significantly adversely affected. By reason of the failure on the part of the attending medical personnel, the patient is now expected to develop kidney failure during the course of his lifetime, necessitating transplant and/or dialysis.
This injury has had a profound affect upon the Plaintiff in terms of his physical and mental health. It has impacted upon his family and his work. The patient instructed Patrick Mullarkey of this office to investigate the quality of care which had been furnished.
Medical evidence was obtained on behalf of the patient to determine the nature of the substandard care and its consequences. Evidence was also obtained in relation to the financial impact of the injury on the Plaintiff’s earnings, pension, care, childcare, and other matters. Proceedings were issued on behalf of the Plaintiff in the High Court of Justice in Northern Ireland, and breach of duty was admitted by the Solicitors acting on behalf of the Defendant Healthcare Trust. The Plaintiff was put on his proofs in relation to the impact of the breach of duty on the Plaintiff.
The case was listed for hearing in 2024. Prior to the commencement of the case, the parties agreed a settlement of the Plaintiff’s action for a payment of damages and costs as described.
Our client comments:-
“I was represented by Patrick Mullarkey in a medical negligence case and I found him to be highly organised, detail oriented and a very strong communicator. He is an expert in his field and leverages that experience to get the best result for his clients. My case was complex and took many years to resolve, but he was always across all of the details. Patrick is very emotionally intelligent and sensitive to all emotional aspects – this was important given the sensitive nature of my case. O’Reilly Stewart are a very organised and professional operation. I’m very thankful to Patrick and all at O’Reilly Stewart – I would highly recommend anyone who needs a representative to use them”.
