Caroline was working as a carer in Ballyclare and was sent to sit with a male patient in their home. Upon arrival she noticed that the patient was significantly taller and heavier than she is. At one stage during the visit she had to help the patient stand up from his chair. As she assisted him from the seated position to the standing position, the patient instinctively grabbed hold of Caroline’s arm to pull himself up. She felt an immediate throbbing pain in her upper arm that later developed into a persistent pain in her shoulder. Although injured and in pain, Caroline was thankful that the patient wasn’t hurt. Caroline assured the patient who was feeling guilty that it wasn’t his fault but instead placed blame on her employer.
Caroline contacted Paschal O’Hare Solicitors
As a result of her injury, Caroline repeatedly attended physiotherapy and also had an MRI scan. Upon taking on her case, we had her further examined by a consultant orthopaedic surgeon. The expert reviewed Caroline’s medical records and identified that although she did have some pre-existing injuries, the recent accident was the cause of her symptoms. We were provided with a medical report to assist us on progressing with the case.
We initiated a claim for compensation against Caroline’s employer however they denied liability. They claimed there was no negligence or breach of any statutory duty on their part. In response we commenced with High Court proceedings and commissioned a report from an independent nursing consultant to use as evidence. The report concluded that a safe system of work was not in place for the moving and handling of the patient. In addition, the moving and handling risk assessment plan prepared by the employer was not being implemented properly by them.
Caroline’s employer remained hostile towards the idea of settlement
Even armed with this overwhelming evidence, our attempts to negotiate with the employer broke down quickly. As a consequence we prepared the case for trial. However, in response to this the employer became more open to the possibility of settlement and we successfully negotiated £15,000 in compensation for our client. Caroline was pleased with the outcome but also grateful that it prompted changes at her work that would ultimately remove unnecessary risk to her patients.
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