Brain Damaged Patient Wins £3.45 Million

A woman who went into hospital for routine gallstone treatment has been awarded a compensation package worth £3.45 million, after a series of medical blunders left her with severe brain damage.

In January 2001, Grannia East, 44, was admitted for surgery on her bile duct at the Royal Hospital Haslar, a former Royal Navy hospital in Hampshire. Complications meant that doctors had to abandon the operation, however. Mrs East lost a lot of blood and developed acute pancreatitis. She was transferred to another hospital, where doctors discovered a massive stomach bleed. She also developed kidney problems and had to undergo further surgery. Mrs East then suffered a cardiac arrest, which resulted in the injury to her brain. She is now in a wheelchair, has problems with her memory and requires round-the-clock care.

Mrs East brought a claim against the Ministry of Defence (MoD), which ran the Royal Hospital Haslar, but it denied any liability. In 2007, the High Court ruled that the medical treatment she received had been negligent.

The MoD appealed against the decision, arguing that negligent medical treatment was not the cause of Mrs East’s injuries. In July 2008, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding that medical mistakes were to blame for her condition.

A settlement of £3.45 million has now been approved, which will enable Mrs East’s family to adapt a property to meet her needs, as well as provide her with the therapy and care she requires.

The Royal Hospital Haslar closed in July 2009.