An accident at work left Jack with a fractured ankle which went undiagnosed for more than three months – he later had to have two operations to correct problems that late diagnosis caused.
He came to Fahmidah Ali of Medical Accident Group and her support and advice helped to achieve a settlement of £70,500.
Jack slipped and fell in mid-January and went to A and E complaining of bruising, swelling and pain in his right foot. He had no X-ray and he was diagnosed as having a soft tissue injury, which would be improved by resting and elevating his foot, and taking ibuprofen. He was advised to see a GP if it didn’t improve.
“I was limping and in pain,” he said; “I used walls, chairs and bannisters to support me. I missed not being able to work and seeing my friends.”
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He did seek help at his local surgery – they followed the hospital’s diagnosis too, and his condition didn’t improve – his ankle was swollen and deformed. Finally, he was correctly diagnosed when his fracture was confirmed at another hospital.
A specialist told him that the fracture was healing and that surgery might not improve matters. But he opted for surgery and his ankle was pinned. Another operation was needed later, after he had suffered an infection, eventually cleared by several courses of antibiotics – Jack is now left with early arthritis in his ankle and may well need further physiotherapy.
Fahmidah said: “I’m delighted that I was able to help Jack after such a straightforward diagnosis was missed – he suffered not only the pain before the correct diagnosis and the after-effects of two operations, but also loss of earnings and the worry of how the injury will affect the rest of his life.”
