Justice for client who suffered serious birth injuries
Nicholas LeahyTable of Contents
The Clinical Negligence team at Osbornes Law have recently negotiated the settlement of a case in which our client sustained serious injuries as a result of clinical negligence during the birth of her first child in November 2018. Our client was represented by Nick Leahy, a solicitor in the Clinical Negligence team.
Background
Our client, AB, fell pregnant in early April 2018 and she booked in for midwifery led care at the Princess Royal University Hospital (PRUH) at 9+5 weeks. PRUH is managed by King’s College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. AB’s pregnancy was deemed to be normal and low risk. She attended all her antenatal appointments as planned and there were no concerns during her pregnancy.
On 17 November 2018 AB called the labour telephone line reporting strong contractions. She was told to come into the birth centre for assessment. She arrived shortly thereafter and at 2pm it was noted that she was in the latent phase of labour. The plan at this stage was to continue with observations, CTG trace, speculum +/- vaginal examination and to arrange for an obstetric review should this be needed.
A short time later, at 15:00 on 17 November 2018, AB was found to be 5cm dilated and the plan was made for her to be transferred to the Birthing Centre to await events. It was decided to manage her conservatively at this time.
At 19:10 labour was noted to be established by the midwife as AB was contracting strongly at this point and required pain relief. The plan was for AB to have routine intrapartum care, pain relief as needed, and oral hydration/bladder care. Fetal monitoring was performed after each contraction before the handover to the night staff at approximately 20:30.
By 20:50 AB was contracting 3-4 times every 10 minutes lasting for 55 seconds, mild to moderate on palpation. Good fetal movements were felt. She was 6cm dilated by 21:00.
AB remained in the Birthing Centre overnight into 18 November 2018. At 03:00 prophylactic benzylpenicillin was commenced, 24 hours after she had begun to leak amniotic fluid. Later at 05:00 the decision to augment labour with Syntocinon was made. She was still 6cm dilated at this time.
At 11:40 AB was re-examined. Her contractions had become stronger and more frequent since earlier in the morning. She had progressed to 9cm dilation at this time, which was significant progress. There was developing caput and the vertex remained above the ischial spines. However, the decision was made to continue with labour and for AB to be re-examined in 2 hours’ time.
By 13:40 there had been no further progress in terms of cervical dilation. However, AB was having strong contractions and this was at a frequency of 4 every 10 minutes. There was increasing evidence that the labour was becoming obstructed at this time and there was caput +++. However, no review by senior obstetric staff took place and no decision was taken to deliver the baby by emergency caesarean section at this time.
It was only at 15:55 that the registrar on the ward performed a vaginal examination with consent and the cervix was 9cm dilated. There was a normal CTG at this time, but a rise in the baseline and the decision to proceed to a C-section was taken.
On 18 November 2018 at 17:30 AB had an emergency caesarean section in theatre. AB was 9cm dilated when she was transferred to theatre. Knife to skin took place at 17:35 and knife to uterus took place at 17:38.
At 17:46 it was noted that AB had a difficult delivery and that there were signs of obstructed labour. A Bandl’s ring was noted. As a result of the difficult delivery, the surgeon had to perform a T shaped incision to AB’s uterus and her baby daughter was eventually delivered at 17:46.
AB’s baby was admitted to the SCBU following delivery, and AB had to remain in hospital because her own recovery was difficult. She suffered from post-partum sepsis and an ileus. Eventually AB was discharged from hospital on 30 November 2018. However, she returned to hospital on 6 December 2018, suffering from continuing post-operative pain. She was admitted and given antibiotics. She remained in hospital on this occasion until 11 December 2018.
The above events had a serious adverse effect on AB’’s subsequent pregnancy in 2020. The plan for this pregnancy was for her to deliver at 36 weeks gestation, due to the problems which she had experienced in her previous pregnancy. Unfortunately, she was admitted with severe abdominal pain at 31 weeks’ gestation and diagnosed with a uterine rupture, which required her to deliver her baby immediately. She has since been advised to avoid having any further children.
Civil Claim
Nicholas Leahy, a Solicitor in the Clinical Negligence team at Osbornes Law, was instructed by AB in December 2020 to pursue a claim against King’s College Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Following initial investigations, expert evidence was obtained from a leading Consultant Obstetrician, which was supportive of AB’s case on breach of duty and causation. Our expert was of the view that despite clear evidence that AB’s labour was obstructed, there was a negligent failure to recognise this, and a failure to not only offer AB to proceed with an emergency caesarean section, but to encourage this as the safest option in the circumstances. As a result of these failures, our expert believed AB’s delivery was more complicated, and that in the absence of the significant failures in care, AB would not have required an inverted-T incision or a reverse breech extraction.
A Letter of Claim was sent to the hospital in October 2021, and a response was received on 1 March 2022. The Defendant made significant admissions of liability in their Letter of Response and invited us to disclose a Schedule of Loss in an attempt to achieve a settlement of her case.
Condition and Prognosis evidence was obtained from a Consultant Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon, who advised on various treatment options to reduce AB’s scarring, which was more extensive than it would have been but for the admitted negligence. Following receipt of this evidence, a fully particularised schedule of loss was disclosed to the Defendant. Offers of settlement were made and the Defendant accepted AB’s Part 36 offer of settlement in April 2022 in the sum of £85,000.
Commenting following the successful resolution of this case, Nick Leahy said:
“I am very pleased that we were able to obtain a positive outcome for our client in this case, which reflects the pain and suffering she experienced and will allow her to receive the treatment she requires in future. The fact that this case was settled in a relatively short period of time shows the benefits of a collaborative approach between legal representatives. Unfortunately, too often strong cases are needlessly defended, causing additional stress and suffering to injured people and leading to legal costs escalating”.
To speak to a specialist medical negligence lawyer, contact Nicholas Leahy, or complete the form below.
Share this article
Contact
Contact us today
For a free initial conversation call 020 7485 8811
Email us Send us an email and we’ll get back to you
The service was very professional and efficient. I would recommend Osbornes to anyone.
Breadth of knowledge and willingness to go the extra mile is what makes it stand out. Mark Freedman – devoted to his clients
"She has a real drive to push things forward to a solution, which means she can handle the more difficult cases."
I would like to thank everyone in my case for the excellent job!
Osbornes is best known for its work on HNW international divorce and finance work. It is skilled at advising on nuptial agreements and on matters where there are complicated trusts, inherited wealth and cross-border issues.
More from NicholasVIEW ALL
- 11.4.2023
Osbornes Instructed After Local Authority Data Breach
Osbornes Law have recently negotiated a settlement on behalf of two clients who had their personal information inadvertently released to...
Read more - 23.1.2023
Court avoided after settlement agreed in dental negligence...
The Medical Negligence team have recently negotiated the settlement of a complex dental negligence case. Our client experienced a number...
Read more - 13.1.2023
Delayed cancer diagnosis results in five figure settlement
The medical negligence team at Osbornes Law has recently settled a case involving a patient who passed away following a...
Read more - 25.1.2022
Serious Injury Following TVT Surgery
Case Summary Our client, SG, attended her GP in December 2015 complaining of urinary symptoms including leaking when she laughed or...
Read more - 13.1.2022
Court of Appeal Judgement on Secondary Victim Cases
Judgment was today handed down by the Court of Appeal in the cases of Paul v Royal Wolverhampton NHS Foundation...
Read more - 12.1.2022
Wrongful birth claim successfully settled
Background Our client, J, fell pregnant in October 2015 and took the difficult decision to undergo a termination. She booked an...
Read more - 29.10.2021
Medical Negligence Case Study: Iron infusion cannula injury
Nick Leahy, Solicitor in Osbornes Clinical Negligence team recovered damages for his client who suffered an extravasation injury following an...
Read more - 3.10.2021
Sepsis – greater awareness can lead to better outcomes
In September 2019, I attended the Brain Injury Group’s Sepsis training event in the City of London together with my...
Read more - 20.9.2021
Osbornes represent family of NHS employee
Osbornes Law is representing the family of a former NHS employee who suffered a painful death due to negligent hospital...
Read more - 20.7.2021
Osbornes Successfully Settle Wrongful Birth Claim
Nicholas Leahy, clinical negligence lawyer at Osbornes Law has recently negotiated the successful settlement of a wrongful birth case. Our...
Read more - 13.7.2021
Family In Cardiac Negligence Claim Against NHS Trust
Nick Leahy, medical negligence solicitor at Osbornes Law was instructed to pursue a cardiac compensation claim on behalf of the...
Read more - 9.7.2021
Legal Support For Bereaved Families
What legal support is available for bereaved families? The loss of a loved one is an extremely distressing time for...
Read more - 1.7.2021
Stillbirth following water birth at home
Nicholas Leahy acted for a young woman who had a water birth at home and two midwives were allocated to...
Read more - 23.6.2021
NHS Plans To Centralise Patient Medical Data Cause...
Recent news coverage has highlighted the growing concern over plans by NHS Digital (which runs the NHS’s IT system)...
Read more - 9.6.2021
NHS Plans To Centralise Patient Medical Data Cause...
Recent news coverage has highlighted the growing concern over plans by NHS Digital (which runs the NHS’s IT system)...
Read more - 18.5.2021
Failure to diagnose and treat Ogilvie’s syndrome
Our client suffered the consequences of a delayed diagnosis of Ogilvie’s syndrome following the birth of her daughter by...
Read more - 18.5.2021
Failed to identify nerve damage caused during operation
The Clinical Negligence team at Osbornes Law have this week successfully negotiated the settlement of a case in which our...
Read more - 26.4.2021
Elderly man dies after fall from hospital bed
A hospital trust has apologised after a vulnerable 84-year-old man died due to negligence after he fell out of bed...
Read more - 7.2.2020
Why safety improvements for the placement of nasogastric...
The Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch has this month launched an investigation looking at the implementation of safety improvements for the...
Read more - 17.1.2020
Inquest held for former cab driver
A former black cab driver starved himself to death in hospital after being allowed to refuse food and drink despite...
Read more - 13.11.2019
Fatal Claim against West London NHS Trust
I recently acted in a claim for a fatality against West London NHS Trust for damages under the Law Reform (...
Read more - 22.5.2019
Bereavement Award
A Historic Decision In the case of Smith v Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust & Ors (Rev 2) [2017] EWCA Civ 1916,...
Read more - 25.4.2019
Brain injured woman awarded seven figure damages
Our client, a 76 year old woman, tripped and fell on some stairs when she was on her way out of...
Read more - 22.4.2015
Bowel Cancer need not be a killer
Cancer is a word that attracts stigma. Many people believe that if you are diagnosed with cancer you are going...
Read more