£500,000 Settlement
Pryers’ Neil Fearn helped Sonia, aged 35, from Winchester, to pursue a medical negligence claim relating to Lasik eye surgery she underwent at a local Ophthalmologist clinic in 2009.
Before Lasik eye surgery
Sonia suffered from pre-existing Dry-Eye Syndrome. She said that before having surgery the risks associated with having the condition were not explained to her, and that if they were she would not have gone ahead with the surgery.
After undergoing Lasik eye surgery
Following the procedure, Sonia suffered acute bilateral bacterial keratitis (an infection affecting both eyes). It was therefore also alleged in the claim that the infection control procedures were substandard.
Sonia was not examined by her Consultant after the surgery; instead she was seen by a nurse who spoke with the Consultant over the phone. The Consultant told Sonia to continue with an inappropriate antibiotic, and receive increased doses of a steroid that led to worsening of the infection. Sonia’s prescription was eventually modified, but her Consultant failed to refer her to a specialist eye hospital until three days later, where she had a bilateral flap lift. Subsequently, the condition in her right eye did not improve, and she had to have a further flap lift two months later.
The infection was cured a year later, but Sonia was left with corneal scarring and aggravation of her dry-eye condition. As a result, Sonia was unable to return to her pre-operative employment role.
Compensation
Neil Fearn was instructed by Sonia in 2016, to help her claim compensation. He obtained evidence from a Consultant Ophthalmologist and Psychiatrist that supported Sonia’s claims. The Defendant initially offered to settle for £80,000 in 2013, but the claim was ultimately settled in 2017 for a lump sum of £500,000.
