Rashid Hospital ordered to pay Dh2m in damages

A court in Dubai has ordered Rashid Hospital, which is controlled by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA), to pay Dh2 million in damages to a patient who ended up in a wheel chair after suffering from visual impairment and other illnesses as a result of a medical error, a newspaper reported on Saturday.

The plaintiff’s lawyer, Abdullah Al Nassir, had demanded Dh15 million but the court decided on Dh2 million to be borne by DHA after a committee set up by the Authority confirmed there was a medical error by the treating doctor, the Dubai-based Arabic language daily Emirat Alyoum said.

The unnamed patient, 43, had been admitted to Rashid Hospital in late 2007 suffering from anal bleeding and was treated with injections.

But in March 2008, his case worsened after he started to have stomach pain, shivers, cough, vomiting and other problems, prompting the supervising doctor to admit him to the surgical theater for a laparoscopic appendectomy.

He then started to have continuous bleeding and doctors had to operate on him again. The patient was later sent by his government employers to Thailand for further treatment involving anal surgery.

In November 2009, he returned to Dubai and was again admitted to Rashid Hospital, where he has been still there.

“The patient has ended up in a wheel chair after losing most of his sight…the court ordered that sum which includes compensation for the medical error and unpaid salaries from his employers,” Emirat Al Youm said.

“His visual nerve has collapsed and he can hardly see now…he is also suffering from memory weakness, difficulty in talking and muscle atrophy…he can no longer walk although he is the sole supporter of his seven children.”

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