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Death of a 67-Year-Old Man Following Negligent Treatment of a Foot Infection

Case Overview
  • Our client’s father died after serious negligence in hospital treatment.
  • She approached us at Gerard Malouf and Partners to get justice following this incident.
  • We were able to obtain a settlement of $105,000 for her pain and suffering.

A daughter approached Gerard Malouf and Partners to get justice following the untimely passing of her father as a result of serious negligence in hospital treatment. The client’s father initially was admitted to hospital with severe sepsis, pain and swelling in his left foot. He underwent an x-ray and the radiologist recommended a CT scan in order to obtain more information as an x-ray of a foot or ankle can have low sensitivity for deep tissue space infections. A CT scan was not requested and antibiotics were given as a course of treatment.

At this point, if a CT scan was performed, the doctors would have probably found that our client’s father had a deep tissue space infection and consequently required surgical intervention rather than just antibiotics. Unfortunately, the doctors continued to treat our client’s father with antibiotics and our client’s father continued to suffer from severe pain, fever and swelling. A CT scan was only performed after 7 days in hospital which ultimately showed sepsis. Consequently, the sepsis resulted in the failure of our client’s father’s kidneys. As a result, our client’s father passed away from end stage renal failure which ultimately was a complication from an uncontrolled infection and sepsis.

Our client understandably was distraught due to the untimely passing of her father and approached us to seek answers regarding her father’s treatment. Gerard Malouf and Partners efficiently briefed an expert infectious specialist who was of the opinion that had an MRI or CT scan been performed earlier, the doctors would have found that the deep tissue space infection required emergent surgical intervention. If surgery took place earlier, it was highly likely that our client’s father would not have had end stage kidney failure which ultimately caused his death.

“If surgery took place earlier, it was highly likely that our client’s father would not have had end stage kidney failure which ultimately caused his death. ”


ANTONIN SEBESTA
Our Approach

Once we obtained this strong and supportive liability report, Mr Antonin Sebesta and his team commenced a Medical Negligence Nervous Shock Claim in court. Mr. Sebesta and his team obtained further strong reports including a report for an expert psychiatrist who discussed the detrimental effect the untimely passing of our client’s father had on our client.

Mr Sebesta and his team continued to prepare the case strongly prior to heading into negotiations with the hospital’s solicitors. This result gave our client closure as well as the option to get treatment if she wanted to in order to overcome the effects of the tragedy that had occurred.

Gerard Malouf and Partners as a firm has a strong and knowledgeable team who exclusively practice in medical negligence. Have you or a family member been affected by the negligence of a hospital? If so, please call us on 1800 004 878 to talk to one of our expert medical negligence solicitors for a no-obligation discussion of your circumstances. 

The Result

The parties agreed to a mediation and our client was compensated in the sum of $105,000 for her pain and suffering as a result of her father’s passing.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Information

Negligence is a failure to exercise the care that another in the same position would prudently exercise. The harm caused by negligence is considered to be due to carelessness, rather than a specific intent or determination to cause harm.

While negligence can include misconduct in a variety of circumstances, malpractice is reserved for professionals who fall grossly short of their obligations — and harm others in the process. As a result, malpractice is often called “professional negligence”. If a licensed professional (such as a doctor, lawyer, or accountant) fails to provide the accepted standard of care and subsequently causes harm to the plaintiff, this form of negligence may be known as malpractice.

Medical malpractice is specifically used in reference to medical workers who have committed acts of negligence.

 

Demonstrating that a doctor fell short of their duty of care can be a challenging process. While most doctors try their best to correctly diagnose conditions and provide timely medical treatment, they can’t always be right. In every state, protections are in place to shield practitioners from some litigation. These give practitioners peace of mind on the job and protect hospitals that are doing their best with limited resources. However, these laws also set the bar for receiving compensation incredibly high.

Overall, to win a favorable judgment, you must be able to prove Duty, Breach, and Damages.

 

If you have been injured or an existing condition has got worse following a medical procedure, or even just a visit to the doctor, then you may have been the victim of medical negligence and you may be eligible to make medical negligence claims against the professional who caused your injury.

If you can first show that you have suffered harm, and secondly, that a medical professional failed in their duty of care towards you then you may be entitled to compensation.

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Meet the diverse and dynamic team of compensation lawyers and supporting staff that have made this all happen below. Our multi-lingual team can discuss your claims in Arabic, Assyrian, Turkish, Greek, Italian, French, Serbian, Croatian, Armenian, Mandarin, Hindi, Punjabi or Malayalam.

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