A patient who suffered an injury to her bowel during the course of a procedure to remove a polyp from her uterus, as recovered substantial compensation for the personal injuries, loss and damage she suffered.
In 2021, the patient, then aged 57, underwent a hysteroscopy, under general anaesthetic, for a polypectomy. During the course of that procedure, a perforation was created in the uterus, and the bowel was also damaged. Whilst it was appreciated that the bowel had potentially been injured, and indeed some inspection was carried out, no evidence of perforation was found.
Post-operatively, the patient complained of abdominal pain, and her condition deteriorated. Some 3 days after the original procedure, she was returned to the operating theatre where bowel injury was belatedly recognised. By that point, the Plaintiff had suffered significant contamination of her abdomen by reason of the perforation. The patient required resection of her bowel, and an ileostomy was formed on a temporary basis to allow time for her body to recover.
Our Client spent a protracted period of time in Hospital, and was required to undergo a reversal of the ileostomy about 5 months later. As a consequence of the bowel perforation, our Client complains of a continued lack of energy, general fatigue, and tiredness. She suffers bloating after meals, and will experience abdominal upset on a regular basis. She has a small but recognised risk of future complication arising from her bowel surgery. Unsurprisingly, she developed upset and distress by reason of her experience, and her life has been impacted.
The patient required, and continues to require, ongoing care and assistance in her day-to-day life. It was her case that she was prevented from returning to any form of employment by reason of the difficulties that she has suffered since the care.
Patrick Mullarkey of O’Reilly Stewart Solicitors was instructed to act on her behalf in this matter. We conducted a thorough investigation of the quality of care, and notwithstanding the repudiation of a complaint raised by the Plaintiff by the Healthcare Trust, investigation demonstrated negligence in her treatment. Independent expert evidence attested to the substandard care that she received both in the performance of the hysteroscopy and in the failure to recognise the damage when it had occurred. Moreover, there was a persistent failure on the part of the Defendant Trust to recognise the damage over the course of the post-operative days leading to a poor outcome for the patient. Had appropriate care been provided to her, primary repair could have been undertaken, and the ileostomy would have been avoided.
The Defendant failed to accept liability in relation to the substandard care. Proceedings were, therefore, issued and served on behalf of the Plaintiff, and those proceedings were advanced to Court. The Defendant belatedly accepted liability in relation to its failures in the course of proceedings, and engaged with the Plaintiff with a view to disposal of the action. Damages were agreed between the parties in the total sum of £450,000 plus full costs.
