Clinical negligence team settles claim for weight loss surgery complications

Posted: 17/02/2014

The clinical negligence team at Penningtons Manches LLP has settled a claim for damages against Chelsea and Westminster NHS Foundation Trust for a client who suffered injury after some plastic tubing was wrongly left inside her following weight loss surgery. This caused infection and the client needed to undergo further operations to remove the tubing and repair the damage that had been caused. Settlement was reached following admission of liability by the defendant trust.

Medical products such as swabs, tubing and instruments being left in a patient post surgery is generally regarded as a ‘never event’ – something that should be prevented by systems designed for this purpose and is extremely difficult to defend. However, Penningtons Manches' clinical negligence team have several similar cases ongoing at present.

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