Irwin Mitchell acted on behalf of a teenager who suffered a serious injury as a consequence of medical negligence when he was a young child. We have helped to secure him a life changing £7 million settlement.

Charles was at nursery when his mother discovered a lump in between his shoulders. Subsequently, she took her son to the GP who referred the youngster for scans. These revealed that Charles had a tumour which medical staff thought could potentially be cancerous. Charles was referred for a biopsy but during this procedure he suffered excessive bleeding which meant the spinal cord was exposed.

This complication led Charles to suffer a spinal cord injury and paraplegia. Therefore, we conducted experts to look into the biopsy and the subsequent care who found that there were failures to appropriately monitor Charles after the procedure.

Several years later, Charles still has significant disabilities including paraplegia, spasticity and curvature of the spine. He suffers with severe spasms on a daily basis and has frequent urinary tract infections. Due to his conditions he will need further surgery in the future and experts feel that he will never be able to live an independent life.

We helped Charles and his family to secure a compensation sum of almost £7m which will help fund his future care needs and aid him to live as independently as possible. We helped the family find suitable accommodation by instructing a property finder. The family now have a home, in an area in which they selected, which has been tailored to Charles’ needs. Amendments such as lowered kitchen units, so Charles can reach them from his wheelchair, and a hydrotherapy pool for his physiotherapy, were made to the property to help with his everyday life.

Holly Cossutta, under the supervision of Amanda Stevens and assisted by Elizabeth Marchant, led the case on behalf of Charles and his family. In relation to proceedings, Elizabeth said: “Charles has coped tremendously with his injury and has become a very mature and intelligent young man. His disabilities do, however, present him with major difficulties in his day to day life, which will affect him into adulthood. The compensation that we obtained for him will go towards making life as normal as possible. He will now have access to the care and support that he needs, and will be able to enjoy life as he would have done but for the accident.

“One of the most important things for Charles’ parents was making sure that the Trust accepted responsibility for what happened. We were pleased to be able to obtain a formal admission as well as a written apology. Although nothing can change what happened to Charles, the conclusion of the claim has brought closure and the family can now start to move on and focus on the future.”

If you or a loved one has suffered due to a surgical error or negligence, our clinical negligence solicitors could help you claim compensation. Visit our Surgery Claims page for more information.

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