Gill, a woman in her 30s

Mother-of-two Gill was left with mobility issues and bowel, bladder and sexual dysfunction after hospital doctors failed to recognise the red flags of cauda equina syndrome and ensure she had an emergency MRI scan and surgery.

As a result, Gill’s work life suffered and she needed to move house to a property suitable for her disabilities. This was a huge financial burden for Gill, but after a successful medical negligence case was brought against the hospital responsible for the doctors by JMW she was awarded £1.7 million in compensation.

What went wrong?

Gill’s problems began when she awoke one morning in severe pain in her lower back and a numb sensation in her legs. She attended the walk-in GP centre, before being sent to hospital A&E, where she was diagnosed with a muscular problem and told her to make an appointment with her own GP if she had any further issues.

Two days later Gill noticed that the numb sensation was spreading and tried to obtain an emergency appointment with her GP. However, there were no appointments available and after a few hours her symptoms became worse and she found she had no sensation when passing urine. Gill telephoned NHS 111 and was advised to ring for an ambulance.

Gill was taken to hospital in the early hours of the following morning and was triaged. The triage notes said that Gill had not wet herself and was able to pass urine but made reference to the fact that she had no sensation when passing urine – a red flag sign of cauda equina syndrome. Gill was then examined by a doctor who failed to diagnose her with suspected cauda equina syndrome, despite her also being numb in both legs and her saddle area and the recorded bladder symptoms. Another doctor saw Gill an hour later and discharged her with pain relief and told her to see her GP if there were any further problems.

Gill managed to get a GP appointment for the following day and asked if she could have an MRI scan as she was rightly concerned that nothing was being done. The GP told her it would take four to six weeks to get an appointment for an MRI scan. Gill was not prepared to wait that long and as she had private health insurance she managed to get an appointment with for an MRI scan the following day.

The MRI scan revealed a large prolapsed disc that was putting pressure on the cauda equina nerves. Two days later Gill underwent private surgery but sadly, due to the length of time that had passed since she first attended hospital with symptoms of cauda equina syndrome, it was not possible to prevent permanent nerve damage and the ongoing problems that Gill was left with.

JMW’s investigation

Gill was appalled that despite her symptoms, the NHS hospital doctors who had seen her in the earlier stages had not taken any action., . Gill was concerned her that the red flags had not been picked up on and that this is why she had had such a poor outcome.

The next step was to find a solicitor who specialising in medical negligence relating to cauda equina syndrome to tell Gill whether she had a case for compensation. After reaching out to JMW, Gill’s case was taken on by partner Angharad Hughes who had dealt with many other similar cases and is experienced in navigating this complex field of law.

Angharad conducted a thorough investigation of the medical records before asking leading independent medical experts in the fields of A&E care, neurosurgery and urology to compile reports to consider the care received and impact of earlier surgery.

The strength of the case built by Angharad resulted in the hospital trust eventually agreeing they should pay compensation to Gill to enable her to cope with the impact of her injury.

Angharad negotiated the best possible settlement for Gill, totalling £1.7 million, to cover her lost earnings and the additional expenses her disabilities incur, such as an adapted house and specialist equipment as well as care and support. Reports from specialist experts in these fields were also obtained to assess Gill’s current and long-term needs.