17-12-09
BY MATTHEW KELLY
HUNTER New England Health has been forced to make two large medical negligence payouts in the past month.
Lawyers for the health service settled for an undisclosed sum with Carolane Honnery, 65, who was seeking damages for an alleged breach of its duty of care.
Ms Honnery had elective surgery to repair an aneurysm in a major artery below her kidneys at John Hunter Hospital in October 2006.
The graft pierced her caecum, part of the large intestine, which leaked faecal material and caused sepsis around the graft.
She subsequently lost a kidney and her right leg.
Ms Honnery's lawyer, Catherine Henry said the settlement would allow her to meet her ongoing treatment costs and enjoy a better quality of life.
In late November, the health service was ordered to pay Gary Andrew Hope $525,511 for a botched finger operation.
Judge Leonard Levy found an incorrect surgical technique had been used during an operation on Mr Hope's left middle finger in July 2005.
He suffered numbness and pain in parts of the finger after the operation due to nerve and artery damage.
A second operation to repair the damage was unsuccessful. The health service is expected to appeal against the size of the payout.
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