£2,500 obtained for family of elderly Essex man

Posted 17/03/2014

Julie Crossley, a medical injury specialist at Ashtons Legal solicitors, has obtained a £2,500 settlement for the family of a man who incurred pain and suffering, and may have died prematurely, because of unacceptable delays in his diagnosis and treatment.

Mr D, who was in his late 60s, went to his local A&E department after falling off his bicycle. He was diagnosed with a fractured elbow and a soft tissue hip injury. It was not until he returned for a follow up appointment nearly three months later, having suffered continual pain, that he was correctly diagnosed as having also suffered a fractured hip. He was then listed for surgery. In the meantime, he began suffering symptoms potentially consistent with bowel cancer and started undergoing tests. Sadly, Mr D suffered a heart attack and died before being treated for his hip fracture. The Trust denied any liability.

Julie Crossley comments: “We and his family believe that it was his ongoing problems which probably led to his heart failure and that with prompt diagnosis and treatment he would not have died when he did. He had a right to expect better care than he received.”