A stroke survivor misdiagnosed after paralysis symptoms was awarded £1m compensation following a legal claim over her treatment.
Lisa, a mother-of-two from Bishops Stortford who asked that her surname not be published, was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, in 2016 after suffering paralysis on the left side of her body.
She was on maternity leave at the time and was not referred to a stroke specialist. After an eight-hour wait, a CT scan, a brain scan used to detect bleeding or injury, returned inconclusive results and she was discharged.
Lisa said: “I was advised to go home and that the reason I was like how I was might have been a cause of stress, and that if my situation remained the same to speak to a GP on Monday.
“I left the hospital in a wheelchair and had to be carried up to bed at home by my husband. My parents were in Spain at the time and got the first flight home when they realised how serious it was.
“I was lying in bed on Sunday morning and I wanted to go downstairs.
“My dad carried me down and put me on the sofa, but that’s when my family saw that my face had dropped and my speech was slurred. It was quite clear I was having a stroke.”
She returned to Addenbrooke’s the following day after her condition worsened. Staff discovered Lisa had suffered a second stroke and she remained in hospital for five weeks.
After she was discharged, she had to sleep downstairs for six weeks and was in a wheelchair for a year.
Lisa now suffers with issues in her left arm and hand and a further operation on her left foot and ankle has not helped.
She has since returned to work as a part-time bookkeeper, but is unable to hold a manual driving licence.
She said: “I remain in chronic pain on a daily basis. I’ve just now resigned myself to this being my new normal. I used to be fit and active and I was really positive of making a 100% recovery.
“But when I realised that was never going to happen it was really mentally upsetting.
“I still try to enjoy my life as best as I can but it’s easier said than done – in the summer my mood goes up, but in the winter, it goes down. I’m no longer the same person – it’s changed my life completely.”
The Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Addenbrooke’s, admitted a breach of duty of care.
A trust spokesperson said: “We are deeply sorry for the distress experienced by the patient and her family and for the impact this has had on her life.
“The events in question took place in 2016, and the legal process has now come to a close. The trust acknowledged a breach of duty relating to the patient’s initial assessment.
“We sincerely hope that the settlement reached will help support the patient and her family going forward. We remain committed to delivering safe, high-quality care for all patients.”
Lisa was represented by Hudgell Solicitors and was due to appear in court for the case, but CUH made a £1m offer to cover damages.
Clinical negligence solicitor Hayley Collinson said: “This has been a heartbreaking case. Lisa’s life has changed forever.
“She is unlikely to have the levels of independence she once cherished and will never get back those lost months of watching her children develop and thrive.
“This was an utterly preventable situation in which basic mistakes at Addenbrooke’s have been exposed.
“CUH firstly admitted a breach of duty, and that its error had caused the second stroke, but it then changed its position on causation which held up the process and prolonged the litigation.
“Thankfully, we were able to secure Lisa an interim payment of £50,000 before the claim was settled to help fund various therapies.
“With two huge investigations still ongoing, the governance of this trust and the conduct of staff at Addenbrooke’s is rightly under the spotlight.”
