25th August, 2015 – London, UK:
Number of Mistakes
Joanne was initially admitted to hospital with chest pain, a cough and breathlessness. Her medical team initially believed she had a pleural effusion, which is an excess of fluid that's built up around the outside of the lungs. Joanne was kept in hospital under review, but a few days later, her condition rapidly deteriorated.
Her medical professional believed she may have a pulmonary embolism, and therefore inserted a chest drain to try to drain any fluid. At this point, Joanne experienced excruciating pain, she was screaming in pain and her requests for the consultant to stop were ignored. After this, a CT scan was taken. This scan showed that there was no evidence of a pulmonary embolism, and furthermore, that the chest drain had been misplaced.
After a letter of claim was served, it was accepted that the correct procedure was not followed. The consultant should have done the CT scan before any tubes were inserted, and they should have followed the British Thoracic Society Guidelines, which state that chest tubes should be inserted 'under imaging guidance'. If this had been followed, our client wouldn't have needed to suffer a second attempt at putting in the chest tube correctly.
'Pain and Suffering'
Not only has Joanne been left with a scar where the chest drain was negligently inserted, she also still experiences pain in the area. This pain is likely to be permanent, and she may need a procedure in the future that involves an injection to damage the nerve. This would mean that Joanne would have numbness at the area, rather than living with permanent pain.
The Outcome
The Clinical Negligence solicitor, Sarah Holdsworth, was able to secure an out of court settlement of £25,000 for Joanne. Sarah explains, "We were able to receive from the Trust a letter of response admitting that the chest drain was inserted without radiological guidance, and it was admitted that Joanne had suffered because of this. The compensation settlement we were able to secure Joanne not only accounts for her scars, suffering and ongoing pain, but also for any travel expenses and any care and assistance she needed."
Source: http://www.simpsonmillar.co.uk/news/news.aspx?newsid=3243