A family have resolved their claim for loss due to lack of hospital treatment out of court following the death of 69-year-old Eileen Maloney at Mayo General Hospital.
The family made their claim following an investigation into the circumstances of Eileen´s death in February 2009. Eileen had been admitted to the Mayo General Hospital on Sunday 1st February, complaining of an acute abdominal pain, and although an X-ray revealed a small obstruction in her bowel, no review of the x-ray was conducted to check for a perforated bowel.
Eileen – who was suffering from cancer at the time – underwent a CT scan on the following Friday (6th February) which revealed a tumour had developed in her large intestine; but again a perforated bowel was not considered to be the cause of her ongoing pain – allegedly due to a lack of experienced doctors being available – and surgery was not scheduled until the next week (12th February).
Eileen died five days after her operation, and the family claim they were informed that Eileen would have survived the surgery and lived for a further six months had her condition been diagnosed and acted upon correctly. With this information, the family made a claim for loss due to lack of hospital treatment against the Mayo General Hospital and the Health Service Executive (HSE).
The claim for loss due to lack of hospital treatment was initially denied by the HSE but, at the High Court in Dublin, Mr Justice Michael Peart heard that an out-of-court settlement had been agreed without admission of liability that would see the family receive €50,000 in compensation for their loss. After hearing the circumstances of Eileen´s death, the judge approved the settlement – extending his sympathies to the family and saying that this was a “very, very tragic case”.