klagenfurt. A missing testicle, an irreparably damaged heart, a disfigured face and speech impairment: How are local doctors responding to the rise in major patient claims and the amounts of money the justice system is providing to victims of malpractice?
Lawyer Paul Wolf from Klagenfurt, specializing in medical law, is currently handling a total of 150 (!) malpractice claims. Increasingly, patients feel mistreated by doctors, inadequately informed, and some suffer serious long-term consequences. How many cases need to be prosecuted?
“Almost all of them. “There are almost no compromise offers.” ThatS because insurance companies naturally put the brakes on medical malpractice claims, even if some claims are serious. and it’s often proof that during the daily medical stress, something no one wants to happen happens.But medical negligence comes with a high price. Recently, a child in Lavanttal won nearly 10,000 euros in compensation after lengthy legal proceedings for losing a testicle due to medical negligence.
“Sadly, these types of cases are increasing,” Wolf says. “I have already represented four children with the same fate in Kärnten.” Requests for clarifying judgment are always critically important to him: if problems arise in the future – for example, if the child wants to be the father – the party at fault is responsible.
Were the findings forgotten during the surgery?
The medical history of a 75-year-old woman with a heart condition is also being examined in the Klagenfurt District Court. Allegedly, after a failed surgery, the woman’s condition had deteriorated dramatically. “Before the surgery, it was clarified whether there were suitable veins. “The findings clearly showed there was none – they didn’t explain this to my client, and yet they opened up his entire ribcage before they could operate,” Wolf said, summarizing the complex facts of the case in simple terms. “The medical history is tens of thousands of pages, and you have to go through them.”
The woman then had to undergo emergency surgery. “The complications resulted from an extremely poorly prepared surgery that was not performed lege artis (in accordance with the code of medical practice).” In total,approximately 60,000 euros will be paid for this.
Misdiagnosis of shock
An incorrect laboratory result had similarly dramatic consequences for a woman from Klagenfurt. On the advice of a concerned dentist, he had a cyst on his lower jaw examined and received a shocking diagnosis: Life-threatening tumor, must be removed promptly! During a major operation, the vocal cords were injured, the lower jaw was removed and a plate was inserted. When the so-called tumor was sampled again, the truth was revealed: the cyst proved to be harmless.
“Previous findings were wrong,” says Wolf. Fortunately, the woman does not have cancer. But now she has undergone serious and unnecessary surgery and has suffered as a result: the attractive patient’s face has been disfigured and she needs further surgeries after an overlooked infection. It is not yet certain whether he will receive the 80,000 euros he requested for his suffering.