Scotsman

iTrader: (3)

Thanks folks - just heading back into the hospital to see her (visiting from 1pm....).

David Lock

Give her SN's best wishes.....

Dingdongler

Great to see that there are never any shortage of self appointed experts who actually have no idea what they are talking about on Scoobynet

Scoobynet NSR is alive and kicking

Dingdongler

Scotsman, hope your wife gets better.

May I ask on what grounds you think you may have a cause to sue?

Also why do the cars in the car park have any bearing on the above? Either you believe somebody has done something wrong in which case you may want to sue, or you don't. I can't see why the cars outside (which may not belong to that surgeon) should make any difference to that.

Kinni

Of course no idea about the medical industry which we've ran a business in for the last 15 years and have a background knowledge of over 30 odd years in. Never in that time has anything gone wrong to warrant knowledge on such issues.

Snapped fibres inside bodies, lasers causing internal injuries and all the action that follows when people like the MDA all get involved no knowledge at all.

Simply check there credentials which should of been done prior to the case is all I'm saying prior to anything to begin with.

hodgy0_2

all the flash cars do is higlight the fact the private healthcare is a business a well paid one

and they provide a service

the the op paid for a service he got poor service

accidents happen but if a garage accidently dropped a hammer on my car i would sue if they did not put it right

was it negligent, well let the courts decide

cster

Ditto Midlife..
You would have to prove negligence.
I imagine the people you would be suing would be the Surgeon's medical defense insurers in a case of this type (unless he has been very naughty and doesn't have any ).
As relates to the cars in the car park issue - You won't find the NHS spaces too poorly filled either.

Scotsman

iTrader: (3)

I have no idea on the technicalities but the surgeon made a mistake during the procedure that shouldn't have happened and wasn't one of the 'risks' we were expecting. It should have been a routine 10 minute operation but due to surgeon error it ended up being 3 hours with another surgeon brought in.

This was a private procedure and hospital that we paid for. I guess I'm looking for some professional responsibility. With my own business, if I fcucked up then I would have to compensate my customer - either with a reduction in the bill, or additional services. Beyond that I have professional indemnity insurance. Why should the medical profession just be able to say 'sorry' and we walk away with pain and further cost to ourselves for a service we paid for?

The cars make no difference. As I said in my post, passing by them at the time didn't help as I was in the middle of adding up the amount of hassle and cost the surgeons mistake is going to cost us. My wife has a growing business, and this couldn't have happened at a worse time. At the time I was also considering the impact on the surgeon if we pursued anything as she seemed really nice, but seeing the flash cars just then lessened my sympathy a bit (in conjunction with my thoughts at that time about the position her mistake has put us in).

I'm really am not interested in suing anyone, but I do think that any professional service provider should lessen the impact of their mistake on their customer. That might be as simple as providing a driver for the time my wife can't drive.

Anyway, my main focus is making sure my wife gets better and juggling my work with 2 kids under the age of five.

She seems to be improving, though it can take a couple days for the bowel to start working again, seems that peristalsis goes into a huff. Hopefully once that gets going and we're sure that no infection kicks in (given that it's the bowel) then I'll feel a lot happier.

Staff at the hospital have been excellent in their care for her.

Dingdongler

Scotsman, you are assuming the surgeon has fcked up but as yet that has not been established. If she hasn't made a mistake then it is a complication of surgery, ie the risk you take.

During the consent process common risks will/should have been explained to you. Very rare risks such as this one DOES not have to be explained by law. The complication your wife had can happen during this kind of surgery.

The surgeon will like you be covered by indemnity. If she hasn't actually made a mistake I don't see why she should reduce her fees or compensate you. In the same way she would have charged you the same whether it took 15 mins or 3 hours. In actual fact you could argue that she should charge you more as it took her three hours to sort it out.

In terms of your case I don't think you'll get zip.

HTH

Scotsman

iTrader: (3)

Very probably - and it does make sense that all risks don't have to be explained - otherwise nothing would get done. I am going to be interested in finding out though exactly how/why this complication happened.

The surgeon did keep on apologising for her mistake after she came out of surgery, which was considerate. From what I remember of the conversation, she ended up cutting through something that she shouldn't have. I have no idea though whether a mistake like that is classed as an acceptable complication (given that another surgeon probably wouldn't have made it).

+Doc+

I wish your wife well and feel you should put it down to something that can happen in surgery.
Personally I would give the attention to my better half and forget about claims.

Scotsman

iTrader: (3)

Thanks

Yes, apart from this thread on Scoobynet this morning and tonight whilst the kids are playing before it's bath time, I'm not spending any time on it.

dj219957

ive not read all the posts but at the end of the day doctors are human and he tried his best but made an error. its a risk you take during any operation.
i have two platimum coils stuck in my body doing nothing courticy of a misdiagnosis by the nhs but im not gonna bother with the hassle of a legal case. they still havnt fixed my original problem 2 years on either.

Dingdongler

1) You have NO medical qualifications.

2) Judging by the quality of your post I wonder if you've even been to school.

3) You are a glorified sales rep and as such are two to the penny in the medical world. If I started to sell windscreen wipers for aircraft that wouldn't make me a pilot would it?

4) If you knew what you were talking about you would know that the private hospital would have already checked the surgeon's 'credentials'

To have an opinion is your right, but to give advice as though you speak from some position of knowledge is downright misleading. You are neither qualified to do so, nor are you furnished with all the facts to be able to do so.

Diesel

It is a tricky one isnt it. I too hate the sue thing but I have to bear full responsibility in my profession - if I screw up I fix...

When my 5y old daughter ended up touch and go in a hospital, blue in the face on IV and all after 6 visits to the GP and 1 to the hospital I wanted to sue too. Dad was right they were all wrong... So... I went to see the GP that last saw her (at home) - 3hrs before emergency treatment and oxygen. He was bloody MORTIFIED. He learnt from this tricky to diagnose condition, and that was the end of that.

See the surgeon and make your own mind up as a man - you really sound decent and straight and I think you can decide (not some lawyer).

D

David Lock

First step write to CEO at Hospital and express your concern that what was explained to you as a routine operation took an unexpected course. Would they be good enough to send you a full report on what happened with some proper background on who was involved, position in hospital etc. You might also ask about consultant cover for when unexpected problems arise. I would request that this is sent to you within two weeks. Just nice and friendly with no hidden threats at this stage. dl

Dingdongler

Sounds like a sensible approach

BTW Scotsman, how did you end up under this particular surgeon? Was she recommended by your GP or friends etc?

Scotsman

iTrader: (3)

Thanks David - yes, very much my sort of approach

Scotsman

iTrader: (3)

No recommendation - it was just that she is was the Doctor at the local private hospital that deals with this area. We have come across her before years ago, she was the consultant we saw when my wife was having some complications during early pregnancy (at the local NHS hospital).

I expect she's very competent and it was just one of those rare mistakes that can happen from time to time given we're all human. I'm not now cross with the surgeon (disappointed of course), I just want to make sure any future complications due to having this healthy piece of small bowel removed is going to be covered and that any short term cost and hassle to us is minimised (i.e. a driver for 6 weeks). It may well/probably be the case that what happened was an understandable mistake given the circumstances, but for my own sanity I need to bottom that question out.

My wife wasn't that great last night, severe pain and bloating as the small bowel isn't working yet, so the gas can't get out -however, just got a text from her this morning and the bloating has receded a bit - so fingers crossed things are starting to kick back into action.

Thanks again for everyone's time responding to this thread - certainly helped me think things through and vent my frustration at the situation.

Cheers
Richard.

hodgy0_2

yes you would have thought so

then again you would have thought an airline would check the credentials/qualifications of pilots who are flying their planes -- but as we know it does not always happen

indeed it seems common for pilots to turn up to the airport after a "big night out"

Private Hospitals are a business and imo opinion should be treated as such

(they don’t do the bleeding edge stuff anyway - that’s usually done on the NHS, by the same Surgeons )

they just want the simple MOT stuff, because it is very profitable, and it may be the case that processes were skipped or not there at all (all to enhance profitability)

that’s what needs looking into – and if so, (although why they would actually admit to it is another question), and they don’t offer adequate compensation then I would sue

any other course of action and you are in effect subsidising them

Kinni

Am I? I don't sell anything at all. I run a business that sells lasers. I train the surgeons and staff how to use it whilst running the business on a day-to-day basis. That makes me a Director of a Company or you could call me a Clinical Specialist I suppose.

Cheers for the assumptions though. I also feel comparing £250,000 lasers to £4.99 window wipers is slightly different but maybe you should start a business selling houses and employ someone who is used to selling flowers at traffic lights after all they're both salesman right?

When you seek legal advise they will go and seek the surgeons credentials to find out how often he performs these procedures and how often they've had issues.

Just for you Dingdongler I will offer no advise in the future as clearly I've no idea in the medical industry of what happens when things go wrong because we're so perfect we've never had any issues at all to know what occurs

Dingdongler

No, you are NOT a clinical specialist. In what clinical area of medicine have you been trained and which qualifications do you hold?

Have YOU personally ever been responsible for the health, treatment etc of any patient? The answer is no as you have no formal clinical training, hence you are NOT a clinical specialist by any stretch of the imagination

This proves that your posts on this subject are nonsense.

Scotsman I'm sorry to go off on a tangent but I think its important that people on this forum don't give advice when they are not suitably qualified to do so.
To have an opinion is everybodies right, but to give advice on the pretence of some kind of expertise is just not on.

mike wrx

quite a interesting read this as it looks like my girlfiend and her family will be going through a similar thing soon but on a quite bigger scale which resulted in her loosing her mum. However this was done by the nhs so its unclear as to where they would stand.

Her mum went in for a hystarectomy (excuse the spelling) and was told all went fine and was sent home to recover, after 7 days of being in severe pain (but on calling the hospital and being told it was normal) on the 7th day it was too much and she was taken back in, she was then in for 9 days where she had various scans and painkillers, as the pain dipped slightly with the painkillers they said theyd keep a eye for afew more days but all was probly fine now.

on the 9th day we had a call from the girlfriends dad to ask us to get there asap as she'd been moved into high dependancy, here apparently her heart stopped several times (and got going again) so they finally decided to reopen her and check there previous work, before they had chance to do so sadly her mum passed away as couldnt fight any longer.

later when we were called in the office the surgen said she had no idea what had happened and couldnt understand where it had all gone wrong....upon post mortem it was discovered that there was a absys where they completed there operation (basically a infection from what i can gather) and this had burst...and with such its like a poison that you cant stop

that was around october last year, weve just recieved a letter from the post mortem people saying there is to be a inquest about this case and that he has filied a report of extreme mis conduct and negligance against all involved and informed us to get a specialist solicitor to assist us.....weve gone for a barrister.

i personally wasnt a big fan of the whole suing culture after having it done to me in the past when i knew there was no injury there but when something this extreme happens you try telling my girlfriend not too sue...shes not arsed about the money (she said if they paid the 3k for funeral she'd be happy) she just wants someone to blame and someone to tell her weather it could have been avoided

ive waffled wayy to much here lol but its got to me aswell

Scotsman

iTrader: (3)

I've learnt that there's no rush to ask for any report from the hospital - so the focus over the next couple weeks is going to be on recovery and after that we'll probably ask for the report and notes and at that stage take a view on whether to proceed or not.

Saw the doctor this afternoon who made the mistake and have a clearer view on what happened.

She saw the fibroid using the endoscope, removed the endoscope and inserted the instrument to grab and twist off the fibroid. However, she somehow missed the fibroid and grabbed the wall of the uterus - which she then proceeded to tear. Given that when you lie down the small bowel rests on the uterus, then the instrument also grabbed and damaged part of the healthy small bowel. It didn't rupture it, but it damaged the blood supply, which then led to part of the bowel being removed. Goodness knows how she much effort she must have put into it as the uterus is very strong and thick.

I have no idea whether this sort of mistake is classed as negligent or not - and probably wont until we get the hospital report and the view of an expert.

My wife is starting to recover, though in a lot of pain and was really down in dumps today - which is understandable.

+Doc+

My wife was in a similar position a few years back, whilst having our child she had to have an emergency caesarian, which due to previous operations, turned into a lower laparotomy.
To cut a very long story short they cut her stomach and bowel in the op which in turn got infected and she was left with the open wound to heal for over a year.......
Looking back I probably should have had the reports and looked into claims and blames but with a new child and a poorly wife I did not have the energy or inclination.
Keep us informed.