A woman who almost died after an operation went wrong at a privately owned hospital has recovered a significant sum in damages with the assistance of M R Law.

She underwent a hernia operation and remained in hospital overnight, during which time she was in constant pain and vomiting. The following morning she was discharged from hospital and after returning home she continued being sick and remained in severe discomfort.

The following day she was taken by ambulance to the Emergency Department at her local hospital due to her deteriorating condition. Following further tests, it was discovered she had two injuries to her bowel arising from the hernia operation, as a result of which the content of her bowel was leaking into her body. She required emergency surgery to save her life and she was critically ill, remaining in hospital for a couple of months before eventually returning home.

Thereafter, she continued to suffer ongoing health problems arising from the mistakes made during the hernia surgery.

This was a difficult case and I am delighted that our client was eventually able to recover an appropriate award of damages for the huge trauma she had been through.” ~Robert Barker

Robert Barker, head of the Medical Negligence team at M R Law who dealt with the case comments: “One of the risks of undergoing a hernia repair operation is damage to the bowel. Therefore, despite the severity of our client’s injuries there was no guarantee she would succeed with a claim for medical negligence.

This was a difficult case where we had to demonstrate that those treating our client had not provided her with adequate information about the potential complications arising from the operation. Furthermore, there had clearly been a failure to recognise that she might have suffered a bowel injury as she was in excessive pain and vomiting almost constantly following her hernia operation. This should have been investigated before discharging her.

Those representing the other party did not admit the breach of duty at first but we were able to demonstrate negligence on their part, before eventually reaching a settlement with them on the value of her claim.

I am delighted that our client was eventually able to recover an appropriate award of damages for the huge trauma she had been through.”

If you have suffered complications arising during or after surgery, please contact our specialist medical negligence team to speak directly to a qualified and experienced lawyer.