Further Brain Injury Following a Fall

P had already sustained a head injury. He was admitted to hospital to undergo a bilateral cranioplasty having been transferred to hospital from the brain injury rehabilitation unit.  Unfortunately, P was not appropriately supervised, he fell down some stairs rendering him unconscious and causing a further and severe head injury. As a result P lost his physical independence, suffers from severe speech disturbance, left sided paralysis, loss of vision and swallowing difficulties.

Our Approach

We argued that P should have been properly supervised following his surgery. The nursing staff were aware of P’s brain injury but failed to undertake a detailed risk assessment and failed to look after P’s safety which would have prevented the fall and a further brain injury.

The Outcome

P was awarded compensation which allowed him to have top up care at the nursing home as well as compensation to meet his other needs.

The Case In Detail

P was already recovering from a brain injury when he sustained a fall due to the negligence of the hospital in failing to properly supervise him resulting in a further more severe brain injury.  But for the further brain injury, P’s care requirements would have related to cognitive difficulties but following the fall he was totally and physically dependant on others for care.  This resulted in him having to be admitted to a Nursing Home. He did visit his parents at their home but there were difficulties with access due to his physical disability.  The claim was vigorously defended by the hospital but eventually we were able to secure compensation for P which not only will allow him to have some top up care at the Nursing Home but it will also allow adaptation to his parents home to allow easier access. The compensation will also allow P to pay for Physiotherapy, Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy as well as purchase equipment to facilitate his disability”

Comments by “P’s” family

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Sahida and the team at Mintons. The claim was handled efficiently and ran smoothly and we were kept appraised at all times. I would be happy to recommend Sahida and the team at Mintons to my friends and family as the compensation which our son has received will allow him to enjoy the remainder of his life”.