Claire* sadly passed away after a substandard operation left her paralysed. Using independent experts, we proved her original injuries led to her death.
What happened to Claire?
Claire had a history of scoliosis. In 2013, Claire had surgery to straighten the curvature of her spine.
Four years later, doctors told her she needed further surgery to replace the screws and cage inserted in her back. The medical professionals performed the surgery to replace the screws and cage inserted at T4-S1.
Five days after the operation, her physiotherapist noticed Claire couldn’t stand up, and her legs were giving way when she attempted to walk. They also spotted she couldn’t move her left leg when she was sat down.
Claire went for scans. An MRI scan showed Claire would never walk again, and she couldn’t have more surgery as they infracted her anterior artery. A CT scan showed that the screws had impinged her spinal cord, most severely at T3.
How did this affect Claire’s life?
Claire was left needing to use a wheelchair because she was paralysed. Because she was wheelchair bound, Claire suffered pressure sores, contracted pneumonia, and had several respiratory infections. These ultimately led to Claire sadly passing away.
How did we help?
Before Claire passed away, she came to our medical negligence team looking to get answers and compensation for her injuries.
Nicola Ashton led Claire's claim and worked with independent experts. These included an orthopaedic surgeon, a spinal injury expert, and a care specialist. Working with these people, we proved that substandard surgery had caused Claire's paralysis.
The NHS Trust admitted there’d been negligence during the surgery. We began putting together a substantial settlement amount that would cover Claire’s pain and suffering and help with future care and any house adaptations.
Before we were able to conclude the case, Claire passed away. Using our experts, we proved the original spinal injury that came from the negligent operation led to her death.
*Not real name used.
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