Looking for examples of medical negligence compensation claims that have been settled in 2024? In the first half of 2024, our specialist medical lawyers have settled many medical negligence claims for people who have been harmed due to medical error.
The value of medical negligence claims varies depending on the type and extent of the injury. While money isn’t always the main reason for bringing a medical negligence claim, the compensation our clients receive enables them to rebuild their lives.
These recent success stories are only a snapshot of the work we have been doing here at Medical Solicitors so far in 2024. If you would like advice about a possible claim from our experienced and compassionate team, get in touch.
Delayed Diagnosis Claims
Delayed diagnosis of brain abscess in young child – settled for £580,000
This case was settled by Matthew Brown for a 20-year-old man who experienced delayed diagnosis of a brain abscess when he was nine.
At the time, his father was told by an emergency department doctor that the boy had an upper respiratory tract infection and should continue to take antibiotics. Six days later he went back to hospital when he was found to have a brain abscess. He suffered cognitive deficits, loss of visual field, left sided facial weakness and persistent internal rotation of the left foot.
After comprehensive investigations and lengthy negotiations, the claim finally settled in June 2024.
Delayed diagnosis of temporal arteritis leads to blindness – settled for £322,000
This case was settled by Sarah Johnson on behalf of the estate of an elderly woman who lost her vision after delayed diagnosis of temporal arteritis.
Temporal arteritis, also known as giant cell arteritis, is where arteries around the temples becoming inflamed. It requires urgent steroid treatment to prevent vision loss. However, due to delays, the woman became registered blind. She died six years later from an unrelated illness.
The deceased’s daughter brought a claim against two GPs after her mother’s death. It settled in April 2024.
Delayed diagnosis of bladder cancer - settled for £100,000
This case was settled by Miriam Bi on behalf of the estate of an 81-year-old woman who died as a result of the delay in diagnosing and treating bladder cancer.
The lady was under gynaecology care for consideration of her symptoms given her history of endometrial cancer. The gynaecologist overlooked symptoms of bleeding when urinating and an increase in urinary frequency. There was a failure to make an urgent cancer referral for investigations. Had investigations been done, the lady would have avoided invasive treatment which she subsequently had, a year later, and would not have died as treatment would have been curative.
The claim was initially brought by the widower but, on his death, the claim was pursued by their son. The case settled in April 2024.
Delayed diagnosis of scaphoid fracture – settled for £45,000
This case was settled by Miriam Bi on behalf of a 28-year-old man whose scaphoid fracture went undiagnosed and treated for six weeks.
The claimant, who is right hand dominant, went to A&E in May 2020 with pain in his right wrist after falling on his outstretched hand. Following an x-ray, he was told it was a sprain. However, six weeks later it was still painful and swollen. He had another x-ray which confirmed a scaphoid fracture. Hospital staff had missed the scaphoid fracture on the initial x-ray.
The delay meant that he needed surgery, which included a bone graft and screws to hold the bone together.
The claim settled in April 2024.
Delayed diagnosis of coeliac disease – settled for £30,000
This case was settled by Sarah Johnson on behalf of a man in his 30s whose skin condition of dermatitis herpetiformis with associated coeliac disease went undiagnosed and untreated for five years. During that time, his secondary osteoporosis from undiagnosed coeliac disease worsened, and led to a vertebral fracture.
His undetected skin condition caused him to suffer with itchy lesions on his body, off and on during this period. It was treated with antibiotics and various creams and lotions over this period to no avail.
Following a skin biopsy and immunofluorescence studies eventually arranged by dermatology, his condition was diagnosed and he was started on a gluten free diet. His skin condition immediately improved. However, he suffered a vertebral wedge fracture to his spine, brought forward some five decades early, due to his associated worsened osteoporosis.
The defendant GP denied liability and causation but, after a hard fought and litigated case, the claim settled in July 2024.
Delayed diagnosis of pulmonary embolism – settled for £13,000
This case was settled by Matthew Brown for a 64-year-old man who had a blood clot in his lungs that was misdiagnosed as angina by medics at the emergency department.
Six days later, he was blue lighted back to hospital where he received life-saving medication. Fortunately, he recovered well and avoided any significant or long-standing damage to his lungs.
The claim settled in June 2024.
Fatal medical negligence claims
Death after delayed diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension – settled for £350,000
This case was settled by Matthew Brown on behalf of the estate of a 33-year-old woman who died shortly after childbirth due to multiple missed opportunities to diagnose pulmonary hypertension.
It was the deceased’s fourth pregnancy, her first daughter, but she went into cardiac arrest shortly after giving birth via elective caesarean. Resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful and she died before she got to hold her daughter. She left behind a partner, three sons and her baby girl.
The claim settled in February 2024.
Death due to multiple failures of ambulance service – settled for £150,000
This case was settled by Matthew Brown on behalf of the estate of a 54-year-old man who died due to the failures of an ambulance crew.
Paramedics failed to recognise that the patient was suffering cardiac arrest, had an irregular heart rhythm that would probably have been restored with effective use of a defibrillator and delayed in in commencing cardiopulmonary resuscitation. He sadly died at the scene.
A claim against the Ambulance Service was brought by his widow and settled in March 2024.
Bladder perforation in surgery led to death – settled for £100,000
This case was settled by Miriam Bi on behalf of the estate of an 81-year-old woman who died following surgery to remove a bladder tumour.
Before the surgery, the lady had an MRI scan and CT scan which showed she had a water infection and a mass on her bladder. She underwent a Transurethral resection of bladder tumour (TURBT) procedure, during which her bladder was perforated. Her family was not informed of this or any of the post-surgical complications. She was unable to walk, was vomiting, developed septicaemia and later died.
Her son brought the negligence claim on her behalf and the case settled in April 2024.
Baby died of sepsis following undiagnosed infection - settled for £27,500
This case was settled by Miriam Bi on behalf of a mother who lost her infant daughter due to medical negligence. The child was only one when she died of sepsis following an undiagnosed infection.
As a baby, the girl was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. She was in remission following treatment but unfortunately relapsed the following year. Between January and June 2018, she took daily oral chemotherapy at home and a community nurse administered chemotherapy through a Hickman line once a week. In June 2018, the child contracted chickenpox and was admitted to hospital where it was found the leukaemia had returned.
They were preparing her for a bone marrow transplant when the child became ill with sickness and diarrhoea. She was placed on a monitor and had blood cultures taken. Despite concerns of her being unwell, she was anaesthetised for a lumbar puncture the following day. As soon as she was put under general anaesthetic, she went into cardiac arrest. She was resuscitated but suffered a further three cardiac arrests and sadly died. It was later confirmed the child had an infection, in the Hickman line, and had died of sepsis.
The claim settled in January 2024.
Death after failure to spot signs of heart failure – settled for £25,000
This case was settled by Kelly Hunt on behalf of a widow who lost her 81-year-old husband due to negligent cardiac care.
The man died in October 2022 a week after medics failed to recognise a developing cardiac event despite significantly raised Troponin levels. Troponin is a protein found in the cells of the heart muscle and blood levels usually rise if the heart muscle is damaged.
The Defendant’s Letter of Response made early admissions that the deceased “should have been admitted for further assessment and investigations and subsequent treatment (pending those investigations).”
The claim settled in June 2024.
Surgical Medical Negligence Claims
Intestinal punctures during hysterectomy – settled for £150,000
The case was settled by Miriam Bi on behalf of a woman in her 70s who had two puncture wounds to her intestine during a keyhole hysterectomy procedure.
This was not picked up on and the claimant was left with a swollen and painful stomach for approximately 48 hours. Follow-up surgery had to be undertaken when the injury was identified and a stoma was cited for 12 months. She required a further procedure to have this reversed.
The claim settled in June 2024.
Failed hip surgery – settled for £29,500
This case was settled by Sarah Johnson for an elderly man who experienced failures with surgery to treat a fractured hip following a fall.
Unfortunately, it was poorly reduced and went onto collapse, requiring emergency revision surgery. The claimant experienced a prolonged two-year recovery.
The claim settled in March 2024.
Amputation Medical Negligence Claims
Negligent management of foot injury in diabetic patient leads to amputation – settled for £50,000
This case was settled by Matthew Brown for a 55-year-old man with diabetes who suffered with diabetic foot neuropathy.
Ultimately, he needed right below knee amputation due to mismanagement of his condition, which was brought forward by two years.
The claim settled in June 2024.
Medical Solicitors: Here for you
As you can see, our team has had a busy start to 2024 reaching settlements for compensation.
We strive to help as many people as possible get the answers they are looking for. However, no two cases of medical negligence are the same. Therefore, we take the time to carefully consider each enquiry to decide whether there is a good chance of success.
The team is made of up experienced legal professionals who all have different specialisms. We focus solely on medical negligence cases, a very in-depth and difficult area of the law that requires both legal and medical knowledge.
We truly care about giving the best legal advice and the highest standards of client care which is backed up by our 5 star reviews and testimonials from clients.
Please Note: Unfortunately, we do not handle medical negligence cases outside of England and Wales.