Geldards Secure £24k Settlement in Cataract Surgery Case

Amy-Beth Probert, Associate, in Geldards’ Medical Negligence team secured a settlement on behalf of a client following negligent surgery.

Our client was due to have cataract surgery on his left eye at Cwm Taf University Health Board. Our client had previously had a stroke which meant that he was unable to keep his face still and as such it was agreed that the operation would be performed under general anaesthetic as he was not fit for surgery under local anaesthetic.

Our client underwent the surgery in February 2018, but it was negligently performed under local anaesthetic. As expected, our client was unable to keep his face still and during the surgery there was a rupture of the posterior capsule, and no lens was implanted.

As a result, our client suffered from very poor vision and was left with fragments of the eye lens left behind in his left eye and raised blood pressure. A further surgery took place in September 2018, which was successful and provided our client with some vision.

A key issue arising in this matter was the identity of the correct Defendant. Cwm Taf University Health Board initially denied liability and indicated that the private clinic was at fault. As such, investigations continued against both Cwm Taf University Health Board and the private clinic.

Despite their initial denial of liability, Cwm Taf University Health Board confirmed that they were the correct Defendant and admitted breach of duty for the incident. However, causation remained in dispute.

We sought opinions from experts in ophthalmology and psychiatry to establish causation. The experts determined that had the surgery been done under general anaesthetic, the operation would likely have been uncomplicated and that our client’s vision would have improved within 1-2 weeks after surgery . It was concluded that the surgery had caused a major decrease in the vision of our client’s left eye.

Negotiations began in October 2022 and the matter was settled for £24,000 plus costs.

If you have any questions about the above case study or would like to speak with a clinical negligence specialist solicitor, please contact Linda Williams on 02920 391773 or linda.williams@geldards.com.