A Medical Negligence Claim Case Study - Client Situation
Our client was the widow and Personal Representative of her late husband’s Estate. Her husband had a previous history of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and attended the Accident & Emergency department of his local hospital with a four-day history of breathlessness and a productive cough.
Unfortunately his condition deteriorated whilst he was in the hospital, whereby he developed sepsis and then went into septic shock. He was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit but sadly passed away almost 24 hours after having initially presented to the hospital.
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The client approached our Medical Negligence Solicitors to investigate the NHS Trust responsible for her husband’s care, and to claim compensation for sepsis.
Having taken initial instructions, Partner and Medical Negligence Solicitor Sean McCann appointed medical experts in both acute and intensive care medicine to review the care provided to the deceased. Both medical experts agreed that there was a delay in appreciating the deceased’s deterioration.
Furthermore, they concluded that there was a significant delay in administering intravenous fluid resuscitation and antibiotic treatment, and a further delay in transferring him to the Intensive Care Unit. The medical experts also produced evidence that had the delays not occurred, then, on the balance of probabilities, our client’s husband would not have died.
Solicitor Sean McCann drafted a Letter of Claim which detailed the evidence of the medical experts. Whilst the defendant NHS Trust admitted that there had been delays in administering fluids, it denied that this would have altered the eventual outcome. Legal proceedings were then issued against the NHS Trust and Sean instructed a Barrister to prepare Court documents.
Eventually, after expert medical evidence was exchanged, the defendant NHS Trust conceded the admitted delays contributed to the death of our client’s husband and indicated an offer of settlement would follow.
The Outcome
The NHS Trust eventually agreed to settle with the client for £50,000 medical negligence compensation. This case highlights the importance of identifying the signs of sepsis as soon as possible, with early detection and intervention being crucial in ensuring the best possible outcome for the patient.
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