Dean Wilson Successfully Settles Medical Negligence Claim for a Fall in Hospital

Alex Brown has successfully settled a significant claim on behalf of a client who was left wheelchair bound after Maidstone Hospital failed to carry out a falls risk assessment which led to his injury.

Background to the Medical Negligence Claim

On 11 May 2017, Mr D suffered a fall at home resulting in a displaced fracture in his left hip. After undergoing a hip replacement surgery, he was transferred to one of the hospital wards for recovery.

On 18 May 2017, Mr D suffered another fall on the ward whilst trying to take himself to the bathroom. There were no risk assessments undertaken and no alarm systems in place at this time and Mr D was found on the floor with pain in his hip.

As result of this fall, Mr D required another hip replacement surgery. Unfortunately, the hip became infected, and he required the whole of his left hip to be removed. This left Mr D wheelchair bound and fully dependant on his wife for care.

Mr D’s wife was required to give up her job and pay for professional care for her husband for several years before he sadly passed away from an unrelated condition.

The Claim

Dean Wilson alleged that the hospital had been negligent in failing to carry out a falls risk assessment (despite it being known that Mr D had a high risk of falls) as well as putting protective measures in place for our client’s safety.

Expert evidence was obtained confirming that the hospital had been negligent and that as result of their negligence, Mr D required much higher care needs than he would have needed had the fall in hospital not occurred. This led to a full admission of liability from the Trust.

Outcome

The claim settled for just under £100,000 and our client was very pleased with the outcome which was a significantly higher figure than they had expected to receive.

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