Cork University Hospital expressed its regret in the High Court to a male patient for its failings in his treatment while he underwent CT scans at the facility. The hospital’s top executive’s apology was delivered to the court after the individual, who sustained a brain injury following a heart attack during a CT scan half a decade ago, settled his lawsuit for €2.1 million. Due to the court’s directive, the man’s identity is withheld.
Oonah McCrann, the man’s chief counsel, presented to the court their argument that if the initial CT scan was accurately reported to reveal an abscess on the posterior wall of his throat, there would have been no need for a different CT scan which demanded a sedative. Unfortunately, the patient had a cardiac arrest and suffered a brain injury following the administration of the sedative, according to Ms McCrann.
The regret over the failings in the patient’s care was expressed by the hospital in a letter delivered to the man and his loved ones. “Acknowledging the tremendous difficulty this period has been for you, we offer our sincerest apologies on behalf of the entire team at Cork University Hospital,” the letter conveyed.
The man, a Parkinson’s disease sufferer in his sixties, took legal action against the Health Service Executive (HSE). His counsel informed the court that the liability in the case was acknowledged, however, attributing the cause remained controversial. The HSE argued that the alleged cognitive problems were a result of his existing Parkinson’s disease.
His counsel described it as an exceptionally complex case, stating that their specialist would argue that cognitive impairment was a consequence of the brain injury. The man was admitted to Cork University Hospital close to midnight on February 18th, 2019 after he reported progressively worsening neck pain in February 2019.
The original report alleges a misinterpretation and failure to identify signs of an abscess in the initial CT scan taken on February 19th, 2019. Despite the presence of the abscess, the scan’s feedback erroneously reported no occurrence of a neck abscess.
Subsequently, this misdiagnosis resulted in the man undertaking an unrequired CT myelogram with sedation. Allegations posit there was inadequate consideration given to the potential implications of the man’s Parkinson’s disease and the medication he had previously been prescribed post-hospital admission.
There were further accusations of the failure to acknowledge and act upon the man’s deteriorating health before he suffered a cardiac arrest. The proposition states that had there been proper observation and monitoring post the sedative’s administration and during the CT myelogram on February 19th, 2019, there would have been early detection of his worsening state and preventative measures taken. This would have, in turn, averted the cardiac arrest and subsequent brain injury incident.
Upon approving the settlement, Justice Paul Coffey expressed his best wishes to the affected individual and his relatives.