Scunthorpe man sues NHS trust after losing his leg
A Scunthorpe Man has taken court action against Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust after he had to have his leg amputated.
Mr Lynskey, 68, from Scunthorpe was being treated at Scunthorpe General Hospital by Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
The London High court papers show that Michael Lynskey, and his legal team claim his left leg was ‘negligently’ amputated at the knee on October 11, 2018. He is now suing Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust for more than £200,000 in compensation.
According to the claim against the hospital, Mr Lynskey left leg had to be amputated because a harmful ulcer formed on his heel after a delay was made in the diagnosis and treatment of his condition.
Doctors noted in January 2018, that Mr Lynskey had worsening varicose veins in his left leg. They also noted that he had pain, which was sometimes excruciating, and he had pain in his calf and foot.
To help deal with the pain, Doctor prescribed pain relief. However, the pain was so bad that it was affecting Mr Lynskey emotionally and physically. The pain caused lack of sleep as well as being so painful he would sometimes cry in pain. At times he was also left with suicidal thoughts.
According to the High Court Papers, doctors were unable to examine him properly due to the extreme pain he was going through. In August 2018 an examination found severe narrowing of his right femoral artery, with other arteries diseased, and a left femoral artery blocked.
In September 2018, he developed an ulcer on his left heel. He was admitted to Scunthorpe General Hospital in October where doctors found no pulses in his legs, and cold pale limbs.
The court papers show that Mr Lynskey had a medical procedure to inset stents in the arteries. This restored the blood flow, but on October 11th, Doctors amputated his left leg after they said there was a very poor prognosis for it.
Since Mr Lynskey had his leg amputated, he has suffered from stump pain, phantom limb pain, and other symptoms. He now needs care and assistance on a daily basis and also needs to use a wheelchair.
Mr Lynskey is claiming compensation as he said the Trust were negligent in their care for him. He has said that doctors failed to carry out a full and proper assessment of his condition and appreciate the significance of his symptoms. He also claims they failed to realise that he had critical ischaemia – severe obstruction of the arteries.
Papers show that Mr Lynskey believes the Doctors failed him. He believes that had he been urgently admitted initially, he would have undergone urgent investigations followed by surgery, and would have kept his leg.
Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust have admitted liability. They have said that some of the tests carried out on Mr Lynskey should have been reviewed and acted on earlier and if they had been reviewed then, he would probably have avoided the amputation.
It was responsible for the vascular service operated at Scunthorpe at the time.
Although the hospital trust has admitted liability, both sides are in dispute over the size of the compensation claim. If the size of the compensation amount cannot be decided, then the High Court Judge will decide.