“I developed an infection after surgery because the hospital was negligent.” Which case won?
A case in NSW centred on the question of whether a hospital was liable for a patient developing an infection after surgery.
On 7 June 2010, a woman attended a hospital for the repair of an incisional hernia that had developed at the site of her caesarean section wound, following the birth of her third child at the end of 2009.
The patient was admitted for surgery by a senior surgeon, but underwent the hernia repair at the hands of a junior surgeon, with the senior surgeon present to assist. The hernia was repaired and surgical mesh was placed over the hernia site.
“I suffered catastrophic complications because a negligent neurosurgeon gave me bad advice.” Which case won?
The patient was a 73-year-old man who was happy, fit and active. In early 2011, he began to experience headaches and consulted his GP for treatment.
After performing various diagnostic investigations which were found to be inconclusive, the man’s GP referred him to a neurosurgeon.
The man consulted the neurosurgeon, who identified on a CT scan that the man had a benign brain tumour. The surgeon took the view that the tumour could be removed endoscopically, without the need to open up the patient’s skull. The surgeon said that this surgery would enable him to remove the tumour through the patient’s nose.
