Case study: £115,000 following knee replacement surgery
When you go to hospital or the doctor’s surgery for a routine procedure such as a knee replacement, you don’t expect it to go awry.
After all, we trust the healthcare professionals who carry out surgery to take reasonable care on our behalf. And in general they do a fantastic job of protecting our health.
Unfortunately, avoidable mistakes such as the one below are made in hundreds of operations each year. These are mistakes which often have very real consequences for each patient’s health.
Case study: pain after knee replacement surgery error
Paul, 77, had knee replacement surgery in 2010. The operation was supposed to improve his ability to walk and reduce discomfort, but he continued to experience knee pain long after he should have recovered.
He went to see his GP, who told him he had a ‘valgus deformity’, meaning his knee was out of alignment.
Paul came to our medical negligence solicitors for help and we agreed to look at his case. We asked a second, independent doctor to examine Paul and they confirmed his GP’s diagnosis. He advised that the knee replacement surgery had not been carried out to an appropriate standard.
Starting the knee replacement surgery claim
Our medical negligence solicitors solicitors put forward a claim on Paul’s behalf, arguing that his operation had not been carried out properly.
The hospital which carried out Paul’s surgery admitted that it made an entirely avoidable mistake during the operation. However, the hospital’s lawyers argued that the injury didn’t affect Paul’s quality of life that much.
Our solicitors helped Paul produce evidence that, as well as the ongoing pain, the new knee injury had prevented him from carrying out daily activities. He now needs assistance with basic personal care for the rest of his life.
Out-of-court settlement
As a result of this evidence, we were able to settle Paul’s claim out of court for £115,000. This will go towards funding his care and equipment needs in the future.
Get in touch with our surgical negligence solicitors
Our medical negligence solicitors are experts in handling legal claims arising from surgical negligence. To speak to us about a claim for knee replacement surgery, a hip replacement failure or any other orthopaedic condition, such as a missed fracture, call us on 0117 325 2929 or complete our online enquiry form.