PATIENT'S CLAIM

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22972, 25 February 1938, Page 14

PATIENT'S CLAIM

[WAIHI HOSPITAL CASE 'ACTION FOR £Bl5 DAMAGES BOARD AND DOCTOR SUED .ALLEGATIONS OF NEGLIGENCE An action for damages amounting to £Bl5 8s 6d against the Thames Hospital Board and Dr. Archibald Jenkins,., inedicaL-superintendent of the Waihi Hcjspital, was begun in the Supreme Court yesterday by Alice Darlington, widow, of Waihi. Plaintiff alleged that the doctor's treatment of her while she suffered a fractured wrist and thigh, his general care and supervision of her were negligent, careless and faulty. Mr. Justice Callan was on the bench. Plaintiff was represented by Mr. Barrowclough, with him Mr. Clark, of Waihi, and Mr. V. R. Meredith, with him Mr. ,N. I. Smith, appeared for the defendants, against whom the claim was jointly and severally made. In her statement of claim, plaintifE set out the following:—"Up to November 30, 1937, the Waihi Hospital Board controlled the Waihi Hospital, after which the Waihi hospital district was abolished and the Thames hospital dis- ' trict constituted. The new body therefore assumed the liabilities of the old. Dr. Jenkins was continuously employed by the Waihi Hospital Board as medical superintendent of the Waihi Hospital between March 29 and November 30 of last year. General Outline Palintiff had a fall on March 129, 1937, when she suffered a fractured loft wrist and'left thigh, and was admitted to hospital. She remained in Dr. Jenkins' care until her discharge on August 11, 1937. She claimed that his method of reducing and splinting her wrist resulted in a union of the fragments in an unsatisfactory position, and that he failed to repeat the reduction until a better result was secured. She alleged also that Dr. Jenkins' splinting of her left leg and thigh resulted in the development of pressure ulcers; that he failed and neglected to detect and treat five pressure ulcers, that ,he failed to rectify the position of the splints which caused the ulcers to develop, and failed to examine her left leg and thigh, or to prescribe massage or other proper treatment. As the result, she said, her recovery was greatly she suffered unnecessary pain and inconvenience, and the movements of her wrist were more restricted than they should be. The pressure trouble resulted, she claimed, in a permanent limitation of the movement Qf her left knee joint, an impairment of leg muscles and" nerves, and the development of drop-foot. Plaintiff therefore claimed ,£7e»o gen-eral-damages and £65 8s 6d to cover general expenses incurred for subsequent treatment in Auckland. Terms of the Defence

The general terms of the defence were that Mrs. Darlington's admission to the Waihi Hospital was acknowledged, bnji it was denied that she was negligently treated. Further, if plaintiff were, suffering from any disability or incapacity, which would', be denied, the answer was that it was due solely to the accident she suffered and not the result of > her treatment by Dr. Jenkins or any other servant or employee of the Hospital Board. A further defence was that plaintiff wak statute barred, in that "she failed to begin ber action at law within six months from the acts or omissions of which she eonwlained. • > :

In opening Ids. case, Mr. Barrowclqiigh said tlmt for the first in oath in hospital plaintiff 'suffered intolerable agony.. She snew she would have to endure some pain, but the suspension of her left l6g, and the manner in which it was splinted caused her pain beyond endurance, and at last she could stand it no" longer. > ,r When the leg was taken down by Dr. jenkins, it was found to be ill/a most appalling condition," Mr. Barrowclough continued. Plaintiff contended this was brought about,by the unskilful treatment by the doctor. She Ibad; times before the doctor, removed the splint. Treatment Described

' Plaintiff,. in her evidence, said she was 61 years of age and the holder of a- Crown lease' property, about 100 acres in area, near Waihi. On March 29, 1937, she fell outside the separator room and injured her left wrist and thighl She was admitted to the Waihi, Hospital j and Dr. -Jenkins took, X-ray photographs, and while she was under an anaesthetic her- left leg was enclosed in a temporary splint, and her t wrist was splintered and >bandaged. She: \ eaid the doctor- told her he was too; f but,y ihat day to ; complete the work. I; The next day 'further X-ray pictures were taken, and a "special form ofj Bplirit .was fitted./ Nothing further was done; with Her wrist... r j Witness described how her legs were Btrung'up, with/weights on them. Her legs ,were very painful, she said, and she' Complained several times 'to the doctor and to the sister. "When I told hun I Avas in terrible pain, he said I must expect it with such a bad break," she continued, "so I just thought 1 had to grin and bear it. As the days passed, I suffered more. I told the cnctor, but he did not say anything." . Loosened Bandages ;• "I told him it was not the break, feut my knee and foot. He said, 'Nonee'nse, woman. It could not hurt; there is nothing there to hurt.' Every time I complained about the pain, he would tighten' the screw of the boot I was wearing, and tighten the strap round my knee. He did that several times." Plaintiff said she tokl the sister of the pain she was suffering, and that the sister said, sho would loosen the fastenings a little if witness said nothing about it. Witness promised, and the lessened tension gave relief. '.'The doctor discovered it next morning," witness stated. "He asked who did it, but no one answered him. He jufjt tightened it again and mado it more painful for me. It was just like putting your foot into boiling water. He never examined my leg to see what was causing the pain while my legs wore strung up." She detailed the condition of her 'leg at the end of April or thereabouts, when Dr. Jenkins lowered her legs and removed-the splints, much on the lines of what Mr. Barrowclough said in his opening address. , The case will be continued this morning.