Personal injury advice from
Thompsons Solicitors
Damages Recovered for Employee’s Neck Injury at Work
7th March 2012
We recently acted for a hospital employee in a personal injury claim, after she suffered a neck injury whilst working due to a shortage of staff and lack of equipment.
Injured at Work
Our client was preparing an operating theatre for a regularly scheduled patient. She and her colleagues were then told however that an A&E patient requiring emergency surgery was on the way to them instead. Despite receiving information about the nature of the patient’s injuries, two of the nursing staff were sent on their lunch break by the person in charge and one of the doctors was told they were not needed.
When the patient arrived she had to be physically supported to stabilise her injuries. If supports were readily available these would have been put into place immediately, however there were none so our client had to provide support manually. This meant holding her body against one side of the patient and stretching across to the other side to hold onto a bed sheet and pull it tight. She had to remain in this awkward position, exerting substantial pressure, for a prolonged period.
Eventually more staff arrived to assist. Someone went to look for supports and they were put into place so that our client could be relieved. By this point her neck had become stiff and tender and this developed into severe pain in her neck, with pain radiating into her shoulder and arm. Scans showed she had a spinal injury, namely 2 damaged discs in her neck, and she had to take around 3 months off work to recover.
She can no longer carry out more physical tasks at home because of her injury and could not return to her original job, so she had to take an alternative role.
Compensation Claim
Our client felt that her injury at work could have been avoided if there was a safe system of work in place, the correct number of staff and the relevant equipment. She therefore instructed our expert personal injury lawyers to assist her in a compensation claim.
We submitted a claim against her employer and they admitted liability. We then obtained medical evidence in respect of our client’s personal injury and evidence of her related financial losses to accurately assess how much compensation she should receive. The defendant made an initial offer, which we advised our client to reject as it did not reflect the extent of the damage caused. Through negotiations we were able to secure an increased offer and she received £25,000 in damages.
Accident Claim Advice
If you have been injured in a workplace accident caused by the negligence of someone else, you may be in a position to make an injury claim. Our specialist lawyers can provide you with advice on your individual case on a cost-free, confidential basis.
Contact The Legal Line on 0800 0328511, or by completing a claim enquiry form online.
Contact us
Testimonials
"It wasn't realistic for me to work any more and the loss of my income placed an additional strain on us."
Jane Evans
Mother of Rebecca
Personal Injury News
