Irwin Mitchell Secure Rehabilitation Package

A Walsall man who was seriously injured after an accident at work is calling for improved safety regulations in the workplace after he is still not able to return to work and is still suffering with extensive injuries after TWO years on from the date of his accident at work.

Glenn Lowe was fitting and repairing a kitchen with a colleague on 2nd May 2013 at a property which had recently been flooded. Glenn was in the process of moving the kitchen units from the garden where they had been delivered, to the front of the house, when he slipped over some loose block paving whilst carrying a heavy kitchen unit in the garden of the premises he was working at, and fell heavily on his right hand side, the kitchen unit falling onto his knee, severely injuring his leg.

His colleague rushed him to Walsall Manor Hospital’s A&E. Glenn was provided with crutches and discharged home being told his knee would heal with rest.

Throughout the next few weeks, Glenn’s symptoms began to get worse and he was unable to put any weight on his leg. His leg started to swell and he suffered from various infections, discolouration of his right leg, ulcers and lesions on the bottom of his foot. Glenn was left in constant pain and has since been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Sympathetic Dystrophy (chronic pain condition).

The 47-year-old instructed specialist serious injury lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate his case as to whether his employers, Grelson Limited, had breached any health and safety guidelines.

When Glenn approached Irwin Mitchell, he was in an extremely bad way and was clearly experiencing a downward spiral of symptoms.

Fortunately, Irwin Mitchell has now secured him an undisclosed settlement to help towards his ongoing rehabilitation and he is hoping to be able to move to a bungalow in the future due to his difficulties with mobility as a result of the accident.

Irwin Mitchell was able to agree to an Immediate Needs Assessment which identified what Glenn’s short and longer term needs were with the Defendant representatives, which has resulted in Glenn receiving medical treatment on a private basis, in the form of a Clinical Psychologist, Dermatologist, Pain Management Consultant and Physiotherapy. We were also able to engage a Case Manager and access aids and equipment to try and improve Glenn’s mental and physical condition.

He had an exploratory knee operation in September 2013 to find out what was causing him so much pain – but instead of helping with his recovery, he severely deteriorated after the surgery and began to experience shooting pains up his legs, pins and needles in his feet and a burning sensation when anything touched his leg.

Glenn suffers with ongoing trouble with an ulcer wound at the back of his knee. On seeing a large open wound on the back of his knee, he attended the hospital. He has been taking various treatments and medications to try and combat the ulcer but he is struggling to totally get rid of it.

With the state of his leg as it currently is, Glenn’s medical team have found it increasingly difficult to treat him, and with the current waiting times to receive an appointment via the NHS, Glenn had been left waiting for lengthy periods in agonizing pain.

The father-of-one continued to experience a great deal of pain and in June 2014 Glenn was dismissed from work after being told it is unlikely he will be able to return to work for the foreseeable future.

The accident has had a significant impact on Glenn’s life, both at home and professionally.  Prior to the accident, Glenn helped a lot around with house with daily chores such as cooking the meals, DIY around the house and walking the dogs as well as caring for his wife, who has her own health issues, but is now unable to do so.

Glenn said: “Since the accident I have not only struggled with the extent of the injury to my knee, but also the impact it has had on every aspect of my life. I suffer from agonising pain on a daily basis; even simple things like having a shower and getting dressed in the morning have become an ordeal for me.

“I started to feel depressed about my situation, the pain that I am in and that I will not be able to go back to work for the foreseeable future. There is currently a huge financial burden hanging over me and my family. I have relied on my wife and my daughter heavily since the accident and they have been absolutely fantastic. My wife has struggled with her health over the years and I used to help her around the house, but I have simply not been able to due to my injuries and this gets me down too.

“I am pleased and grateful for the help from my legal team at Irwin Mitchell who have now secured a settlement from Grelson Limited. This will be a huge help to my family and now with the ongoing medical care and access to rehabilitation services I can focus all my time and energy on my recovery and hope to be able to get to a point where I can manage my injury and the pain, and eventually get my life back on track.”