A young girl has won a $48 million settlement after all of her limbs were amputated due to a hospital mistake.
The child’s lawyer said she was taken to Frimley Park Hospital in Surrey, England with red flags for sepsis and meningitis, leg pain, a high temperature, and heart rate, and drowsiness.
But she was only given paracetamol before being discharged.
A few hours later, her parents rushed her back to the hospital with a fever and rash and she was diagnosed with meningococcal sepsis.
She was transferred to another hospital where she suffered multi-organ failure.
The young girl needed numerous procedures including skin grafts to treat the infection.
Elizabeth-Anne Gumbel KC, the family’s representative, said via BBC that the severity of the child’s sepsis meant she had to undergo quadruple-limb amputations, with both legs amputated above the knee, and above-elbow amputations of both arms.
Her heartbroken parents argued that if their daughter had been treated right away with antibiotics during her first hospital visit, she may not have needed to have all four limbs amputated.
The family’s lawyer, Deborah Nadel, told the court: “This child’s injuries and severe disabilities were completely avoidable with proper care.
“All the red flags for meningitis and sepsis were there for doctors to see. Specific protocols for treating these illnesses exist to protect patients and doctors, but they only work if they are followed.”
Neil Dardis, the chief executive of Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust, had made an apology to the family and said the care the child received “fell below the standard (she) was entitled to expect” and shouldn’t have been sent home, the High Court heard.
On Friday, the hospital trust admitted liability at the High Court in London.
A spokesperson for the NHS said in a statement: “We are very sorry for the claimant’s injuries, and we understand no amount of money can fully compensate for them.
“However, we are pleased that the settlement has been approved, and we hope the agreed damages will ensure that the claimant can live as independently as possible in the future.”
According to reports, the girl will receive part of the settlement in a lump sum while the rest will be paid out annually for the rest of her life.
What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments section and SHARE this story with your friends and family!
Recommended Video For You!
“Nurse Films Ghostly Figure In Hospital”