Personal injury news

NHS systems failure resulted in young mother losing kidney, rules Judge

A young mother lost a kidney because of a 'systems failure' on the part of the NHS, a High Court judge ruled today.

Michelle Roberts, of Leigh on Sea, Essex, was awarded £25,914.16 in damages from the Brighton & Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust.

Miss Roberts had to have her right kidney removed in 2000 because of a serious infection - more than a year after she first attended Brighton University Hospital and only after a private consultation she had arranged herself.

Today Mr Justice Clavert-Smith said an 'aggregate' of factors had contributed to a 'systems failure' under which medics who treated Miss Roberts breached their 'duty of care' towards her.

But the judge ruled Miss Roberts, who said she gave up her teacher training course because of her worsening condition, could not claim a further £100,000 for loss of earnings.

He said, on the balance of probabilities, Miss Roberts had failed to prove the failings of the NHS Trust had forced her to put her career on hold.

Outside court 27-year-old Miss Roberts, who has a young daughter and is due to give birth again in May, welcomed today's decision.

'The main thing is that I won,' she said. 'I have always said I was let down by the Trust, and my claim has been fully vindicated.

'But I don't feel any anger towards the Trust. After I was told my kidney needed to be removed I had it done at the Brighton University Hospital and they did a fantastic job.'

Mr Justice Calvert-Smith said Miss Roberts first attended Brighton University Hospital in December 1998, when she was told she needed a further scan to investigate a problem with her kidney.

The judge found the urologist who treated her failed to fully inform her of the seriousness of her condition, and had made the same mistake when compiling a 'discharge form' for her to show her GP.

To make matters worse, said the judge, when Miss Roberts attended Brighton University Hospital for her follow-up scan in January 1999, it couldn't be done.

She was then given the 'clear impression' Brighton University Hospital would 'fix things up' with a second hospital in London near where Miss Roberts was living as a student.

But when she rang that hospital later in 1999 to make sure they were expecting her for a scan, she discovered they only had her booked in for an out patients check up.

'It must have seemed to her - with good reason - that the medics seemed to be not that interested in her scan,' observed the judge.

After that setback, Miss Roberts became resigned to suffering kidney pains for the foreseeable future, but eventually sought the opinion of a private doctor.

It was only then the extent of her problem - a blocked and infected kidney only work at 5% of its capacity - was discovered.

The judge said Miss Roberts' urologist claimed he had told her or her mother to contact his secretary if she had any problems.

The kidney specialist also insisted he had outlined the seriousness of the problem, but the judge said that wasn't the case.

'Miss Roberts and her mother are intelligent sensible people,' said Mr Justice Calvert-Smith.

'If she had been given any description of the problem I'm sure she would have passed it on to her GP.

'If Miss Roberts or her mother were told they had permission to go direct to the urologist's secretary I'm sure one or other - or both - would have used that route.'

And he added the discharge note had a 'paucity of information' and gave any GP who saw it 'little help'.

The NHS Trust were also ordered to pay all of Miss Roberts' legal costs bill in the case.