Compensation for undiagnosed wrist fracture

M, a young man, was out with friends when he fell outside a nightclub. He fell on his outstretched wrist, the classic way to sustain a fracture to the scaphoid bone in the wrist.

Some fractures are obvious, while others, like this one, can be hard to diagnose. This is exactly what happened when M attended his local Accident & Emergency unit: his fracture was missed. While this is a relatively common occurrence, this cannot be taken lightly as a Compensation-for-misdiagnosis-of-fractures

In M’s case, the opportunity was missed for a prompt repair of the fracture. M was left with a poor outcome, and needed further more extensive surgery. He also faced restrictions in his career options because of the way his damaged wrist affected his ability to carry out certain tasks.

The case was defended, but after some tough negotiation, Simon Elliman secured an out-of-court settlement of £40,000, which reflected not only M’s pain and suffering but also some of the restrictions he might face as a young man seeking employment.