Our Medical Negligence team have secured a settlement for a former building site manager, who lost most of the function in his right arm and hand following problems during surgery.

William Simpkins, 69, visited the Royal United Hospital (RUH) in April 2012, for surgery related to arthritis in his right elbow. He suffered a fracture and a serious injury to his median nerve during the procedure.

Three months later, he had exploratory surgery in which the surgeon performed a nerve graft procedure without consent. This was unsuccessful and Mr Simpkins was left with numbness, pain, loss of function and a hand deformity.

Mr Simpkins asked our specialist medical negligence solicitors to investigate his treatment, and we launched legal action against Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Foundation Trust. We had several concerns, including the level of skill and care present, as well as the failure to gain consent for the nerve graft.

As a result of his injuries, Mr Simpkins is unable to carry out simple day-to-day tasks that most people take for granted, such as buttoning his shirt, preparing meals, putting on shoes and slicing bread.

Now, four years on from the surgery, our solicitors have secured a six-figure settlement for Mr Simpkins, to help cope with the effects of his injuries.

He said: "These problems have made me lose a huge amount of independence. I now need help with a host of tasks which most people take for granted, even related to personal care and issues around the house."

"It was also tough having to accept that I was not able to go back to work due to the problems. This surgery was supposed to improve the movement in my arm and hand but everything has just got so much worse."

"Nothing will change how this has affected me, but the settlement is at least a relief and means that I can look a little more positively to the future. I just hope that lessons are learned from my case so no one else suffers like I have in the future."

Julie Lewis, a Partner in our Medical Negligence team, said:

"This is a terrible case which highlights the huge consequences that failings in surgery can have, with William suffering very serious injuries leaving him with no option but to leave work."

"Our investigations uncovered a range of concerns and our hope is now that every effort can be made to ensure that lessons are learned from this case. While we are delighted to have secured this settlement, it is clear that these circumstances should not be repeated in the future. The compensation awarded to William will support his long-term care, rehabilitation and therapy."

If you or a loved one has been affected by mistakes made during surgery, our Medical Negligence solicitors could help you to claim compensation. Visit our Surgery Claims page for more information.

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