The NHS trust for Ipswich Hospital has agreed to pay out nearly £7 million in medical negligence compensation for a boy who suffered an injury at birth that left him severely brain damaged.
Now seven years of age, the boy in question, whose name cannot be divulged to the public due to legal concerns, had been delivered at the Ipswich hospital but had suffered from oxygen deprivation during his birth, according to his medical negligence solicitors. As a result, he sustained serious injuries and is now left with both dystonia and cerebral palsy while also suffering from learning difficulties and impaired speech as well.
According to testimony given in the High Court, the hospital had performed negligently during the birth of the young boy, leading to his hypoxic injury. If hospital staff had delivered him in a more timely manner, it was said, the boy’s injuries would not have occurred, which would have resulted in him living a much more normal life.
Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust agreed that the hospital was liable for the young boy’s medical conditions and furthermore agreed to make a personal injury compensation payment to the boy and his family of £6.94 million. A £3.25 million lump sum payment will first be disbursed to the injured boy, while £124,000 will be paid every year until 2023, when the annual payment amount will increase to a total of £175,000.
The award money will go towards lifelong care and support for the boy, as well as a specially adapted home. In the wake of the court decision, one NHS trust spokesperson issued an apology to both the boy and his family, stating that the standard of care he received at the time of his birth was well below where it should have been.