Paul McNeil won a substantial sum of compensation for the widow
of a 38 year old man who died from chicken pox related pneumonia
after doctors repeatedly failed to diagnose and treat his
condition.
Dominic died in hospital in November 2005 from a
complication of chicken pox. He had to wait 55 hours to get a
diagnosis and a further 12 hours to receive the medication that
would have prevented his death.
Dominic, who was married with a young son, developed a rash and
a high temperature in November 2005 at home. He was not diagnosed
with chicken pox (or any illness) by two GPs, NHS Direct and a
number of junior doctors from James Cook Hospital in Middlesbrough
where he was eventually admitted on a Saturday morning. All of them
failed to recognise the classic symptoms of the chicken pox.
Eventually, on the Monday morning, he was seen
by a dermatologist, two days after his admission approximately 5
days after the rash developed.
The dermatologist immediately diagnosed
chicken pox. Further delays by the nurses and pharmacy meant that
Dominic was not given the necessary medication (acyclovir) for 12
hours.
Sadly, he went on to develop chicken pox
related pneumonia and died five days after his admission to
hospital.
Dominic's widow instructed
Paul McNeil to
represent her in a claim against the James Cook Hospital. She had
been unable to find any solicitors in the North East to take her
case on a no win no fee basis.
The claim settled just before going to trial
with the hospital agreeing to pay a substantial sum in compensation
to her and her son.
After the case, Dominic’s wife said:
“I would wholeheartedly recommend Paul to
anyone seeking to prove a medical negligence claim. He worked
extremely conscientiously on my behalf and continually reassured
me, despite the whole process being very long and involved (nearly
3 years, with a mountain of paperwork), despite the obvious
distress of going over and over traumatic events, and despite my
persistent worries about the ongoing costs involved.
I believe that Paul and our Barrister, Henry
Witcomb, secured the best possible settlement for my case and I am
very glad I trusted their confidence.”
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Paul said:
“The failure of doctors in the community and
in hospital to make a diagnosis led to serious delays in giving him
the medication that would have halted the spread of the chicken pox
virus and ultimately prevented his death. This settlement will not
make up for the family’s loss but will help secure the financial
position for the Dominic’s widow and son.”
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For further information or if you have
a general
medicine claim please call Paul McNeil on
020 7861 4019 or email paul.mcneil@ffw.com
You can discuss your general medicine
claim with any member of our medical
negligence team on
freephone 0800 358 3848, email personalinjury@ffw.com or
complete our short enquiry form.