A boy, now in his teens, who was left severely brain-damaged at birth, had been awarded millions of pounds in a medical negligence case. Making it one of the biggest damage payouts in High Court history.
The boy, who was born in June 1991, was delivered several hours late, at North Devon District Hospital, and was starved of oxygen.
His legal team alleged that doctors had been medically negligent at the hospital, as a caesarean should have performed eight hours earlier when he became stressed in the womb. The Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust admitted being in breach of duty.
Mr Justice Bean yesterday approved a damages settlement that will mean the boy; who is currently at a residential school and will need to live in a care home for the rest of his life; will receive the financial support that he needs. No exact figure was given for the settlement, but his lawyers said that it could top £10 million.
A mother’s efforts praised
Mr Justice Bean, also praised the boy’s mother, for her endeavors and involvement with the case.
The mother, who thanked her lawyers for their support, said she had often felt “so alone”.
She also said in a statement outside the courts: “I have had to endure watching my son struggle and I have missed out on the joy of watching my first-born child grow up into a young man with all the hopes and aspirations any mother would have.”
“I’ve missed seeing my son go through school, university, falling in love and having a family of his own. I mourn the child I should have had, and his brother has been denied the older brother he should have had.
“My partner and other children have been so supportive and strong, but they have missed out on a normal family life over many years.”
The mother also added: “It is only now that we know my older son will have the care he needs that we can all begin to relax in the knowledge that he will have a good quality of life for the future.
“There has also been personal anguish, and initially guilt, for something that was never my fault. There is no relief in law to compensate families for these losses because no financial compensation can ever replace what we have lost.”
His medical conditions
The court was told that the boy now suffered from epilepsy, developmental problems, behavioural difficulties and autistic spectrum disorder. Barrister Michael de Navarro QC, for the NHS trust, stated that one of the reasons the case had taken so long to settle was a dispute about whether the boy’s autism had been caused by his birth or if it would have developed anyway.
He too paid tribute to the fight that the boy’s mother has shown for her son. “We hope this settlement will mean that T and his mother have a better future and a more secure future,” said the barrister.
The boy’s lawyer, Bernadette McGhie, said outside court: “The boy is a severely disabled young man, but his disabilities could have been avoided had the midwives and obstetricians acted promptly and secured his safe delivery a few hours earlier, as the hospital accepts they should have.
“Had they done so, the boy would not have suffered a hypoxic brain injury and there would have been considerable personal saving for my client, as well as a considerable financial saving to the NHS.
“His mother hopes that lessons have been learned. She believes that no family should have to suffer in the way that they boy and his family have had to suffer as a result of these failures.”
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