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Case Overview:
The Plaintiff in this matter was a woman who underwent an emergency C-section in a Dublin hospital. Following delivery of her baby, she developed a fever and was noted to be pyrexic.
The hospital did not give our client any antibiotics during her C-section in order to prevent infection. Antibiotics were not commenced for three days after the birth, and signs of infection were first noticed that same night. Our client was diagnosed with necrotising fasciitis around the c-section site and required emergency surgery and a wash-out of the site, leaving scarring.
The woman instructed Lavelle Partners to investigate her circumstances and we obtained expert evidence from a UK-based consultant gynaecologist. The expert confirmed that providing antibiotics during a C-section delivery to guard against infection is standard practice and the failure to do so was a serious breach of duty. The expert confirm that this failure led to our client developing a serious and potentially life-threatening wound infection that required emergency surgery.
Proceedings were issued against the hospital and the case was successfully settled for a significant sum plus costs in advance of the trial date.
For more information, please contact Avril Scally, Partner and Head of Medical Negligence & Personal Injury.