£600,000 settlement for man following poor medical advice which led to extensive hip surgery

A man, aged 65 known only as T to protect his identity, has settled his clinical negligence claim against the St Cross Hospital in Rugby after he underwent a number of hip procedures, and also suffered a perforated bowel that could have been avoided.
 
T originally underwent a right hip resurfacing operation in September 2011 but then needed surgery in October 2011 to rectify a loose screw in the prosthesis, in January 2012 to insert a wire to rectify a detached muscle, and in September 2012 to remove the wire.
 
He then needed a total hip replacement in July 2014 after which he was diagnosed with a perforated bowel for which he needed more surgery and which was delayed for nearly two weeks.
 
T instructed medical negligence solicitor Despina Kavadas to act for him in a compensation claim.  The NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA – now called NHSR) admitted that the surgery to repair T’s perforated bowel should have been carried out sooner, but denied that there was any negligence around the other operations T had undergone and which culminated in a hip replacement. 
 
Despina obtained expert evidence reports from an orthopaedic surgeon and general surgeon and served a Letter of Claim.  T was offered £250,000 to settle his claim with the hospital admitting that if T had been properly informed about the risks associated with hip resurfacing he would have chosen a conventional hip replacement and would not have suffered the subsequent injuries and further hip surgeries that he did.  The Hospital also admitted that there was a delay in carrying out the surgery for the bowel obstruction but that the outcome and management would have been the same even with earlier surgery.
 
T was advised to reject this offer which was then increased to £500,000 after Despina submitted expert evidence from the orthopaedic surgeon and general surgeon about T’s condition and prognosis and a schedule of loss. T finally accepted an offer to settle the claim for £600,000, which was made by the Hospital following receipt from T’s legal team of more evidence from care and accommodation experts.
 
Medical negligence solicitor Despina Kavadas said:
 
“I am pleased that we were able to settle T’s claim for much more than the hospital originally offered.  T will be able to use this compensation to pay for therapies and treatment, and to make any adaptation to his home that will make his life easier.”