A WOMAN cyclist has been badly injured in an accident with a lorry this morning.
She was in collision with the white Renault tractor unit of an articulated lorry on the northbound section of London Road, Hilsea, shortly after 7.30am
Paramedics spent 20 minutes treating the woman, who was wearing a safety helmet, in the road at the junction of London Road and Northern Parade, opposite The News Centre.
She was eventually placed on a spinal board and taken to Queen Alexandra Hospital, Cosham. She appeared to be conscious.
Her crumpled mountain bike remained under the fuel tank of the heavy goods vehicle, which was not attached to a load, while police accident investigators examined the scene.
It seemed that she might have been thrown clear of the lorry’s wheels in the collision.
There was no immediate word of her condition.
source: portsmouth.co.uk
Personal Injury Claim
Thursday, 5 May 2011
Plymouth ex-shipwright's death was due to asbestos exposure, coroner hears
A FORMER Plymouth shipwright who travelled the world with the Royal Navy died as a result of regular asbestos exposure on board ships during his early working life, a coroner heard.
Gloucestershire Deputy Coroner David Dooley was told yesterday that Keith Hoskins had a very high level of asbestos fibres in his lungs.
The coroner recorded a verdict of industrial disease on Mr Hoskins, who died from the asbestos-related lung cancer mesothelioma.
The inquest was told that Mr Hoskins, who was 82 and from Gloucestershire, originally came from Plymouth and first worked as an apprentice shipwright at the Royal Naval Dockyard there.
His wife Barbara said he had started working in the dockyard in 1944 and worked on both steel and wooden-hulled ships.
"He told me that all the ships he worked on contained asbestos used for heat and fire insulation, and for lagging pipes," she said.
"His duties involved working in all parts of the ships and although he did not work with asbestos himself, he was exposed when others were using or repairing it.
"In 1949 he joined the Royal Navy as a shipwright and spent 13 years travelling all over the world working on ship repairs and maintenance."
Mr Hoskins was discharged from the Navy in 1962 and then went to work in Bermuda because he could not find a job in Britain. After he took early retirement as manager of a factory he and his wife moved to live in Churchdown.
Mrs Hoskins said he had been generally well until 2010 when he started suffering shortness of breath and loss of appetite.
He had a number of tests and investigations and eventually he was diagnosed with mesothelioma.
GP DrJeremy Halliday said Mr Hoskins had been fit, active and independent until mid-October 2010, with high blood pressure and angina both well-controlled with medication. "He then started to have shortness of breath and lost his appetite. Fluid on his lung was consistent with a pleural effusion and I arranged for him to be admitted to hospital," he said.
"When he was in hospital he was treated as if he was suffering from pneumonia but a CT Scan showed a thickening of the pleura around one lung."
Mr Hoskins was discharged to await further out-patient investigation but then suffered an acute stroke and an MRI scan showed significant narrowing of an artery to the brain.
An operation to repair this was carried out on November 10 and Mr Hoskins made a slow recovery. However, the inquest was told that he continued to lose weight. Before he could be reassessed he collapsed at home and was readmitted to hospital where despite the efforts of staff, he died. A post-mortem examination carried out by Professor Neil Shepherd found extensive changes in keeping with mesothelioma, together with pleural plaques – a strong indication of exposure to asbestos.
Tests showed a very high level of asbestos fibres in the lungs and this was also a strong indicator of an industrial link to Mr Hoskins' death. Mr Dooley said there was a strong history of exposure to asbestos during Mr Hoskins' 18 years with the Royal Navy. "On the balance of probabilities I can be sure that he died from the industrial disease malignant mesothelioma," he added.
source: thisisplymouth.co.uk
Asbestos Claims
Gloucestershire Deputy Coroner David Dooley was told yesterday that Keith Hoskins had a very high level of asbestos fibres in his lungs.
The coroner recorded a verdict of industrial disease on Mr Hoskins, who died from the asbestos-related lung cancer mesothelioma.
The inquest was told that Mr Hoskins, who was 82 and from Gloucestershire, originally came from Plymouth and first worked as an apprentice shipwright at the Royal Naval Dockyard there.
His wife Barbara said he had started working in the dockyard in 1944 and worked on both steel and wooden-hulled ships.
"He told me that all the ships he worked on contained asbestos used for heat and fire insulation, and for lagging pipes," she said.
"His duties involved working in all parts of the ships and although he did not work with asbestos himself, he was exposed when others were using or repairing it.
"In 1949 he joined the Royal Navy as a shipwright and spent 13 years travelling all over the world working on ship repairs and maintenance."
Mr Hoskins was discharged from the Navy in 1962 and then went to work in Bermuda because he could not find a job in Britain. After he took early retirement as manager of a factory he and his wife moved to live in Churchdown.
Mrs Hoskins said he had been generally well until 2010 when he started suffering shortness of breath and loss of appetite.
He had a number of tests and investigations and eventually he was diagnosed with mesothelioma.
GP DrJeremy Halliday said Mr Hoskins had been fit, active and independent until mid-October 2010, with high blood pressure and angina both well-controlled with medication. "He then started to have shortness of breath and lost his appetite. Fluid on his lung was consistent with a pleural effusion and I arranged for him to be admitted to hospital," he said.
"When he was in hospital he was treated as if he was suffering from pneumonia but a CT Scan showed a thickening of the pleura around one lung."
Mr Hoskins was discharged to await further out-patient investigation but then suffered an acute stroke and an MRI scan showed significant narrowing of an artery to the brain.
An operation to repair this was carried out on November 10 and Mr Hoskins made a slow recovery. However, the inquest was told that he continued to lose weight. Before he could be reassessed he collapsed at home and was readmitted to hospital where despite the efforts of staff, he died. A post-mortem examination carried out by Professor Neil Shepherd found extensive changes in keeping with mesothelioma, together with pleural plaques – a strong indication of exposure to asbestos.
Tests showed a very high level of asbestos fibres in the lungs and this was also a strong indicator of an industrial link to Mr Hoskins' death. Mr Dooley said there was a strong history of exposure to asbestos during Mr Hoskins' 18 years with the Royal Navy. "On the balance of probabilities I can be sure that he died from the industrial disease malignant mesothelioma," he added.
source: thisisplymouth.co.uk
Asbestos Claims
Norfolk diabetic family thank hospital for care after amputations
Douglas Tuttle and his mother and sister all have diabetes, which can lead to damaged nerves, numbness, ulcers and eventually, if the wounds fail to heal, to amputation. All three have had to have amputations at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, and all three have spent time in recovery on Docking Ward, which they cannot praise highly enough.
Mr Tuttle, 47, first developed a problem with one of his feet in 2001 after stepping on a nail while working as a machine operator for a demolition company.
The wound refused to heal and he ended up having to have toes removed. By 2007, it had got so bad that his left leg had to be amputated and the Langley man was given an epidural, instead of having the surgery conducted under full general anaesthetic, and watched as the surgeons removed the limb. He said: “It was fascinating to see. The surgeons have operated on me in the past, and you couldn’t want for a better team of surgeons. They fought like hell to save my leg.”
Just over a week ago, Mr Tuttle had to have his remaining right leg removed, and said he had found it difficult to come to terms with losing both, but having the same team look after him this time around had been a great reassurance to him.
He said: “I’m feeling a lot better since I have had the leg off, but how I’m going to get on at home I don’t know. Thanks to the surgeons’ skill I’m still alive today, but it’s also the nurses on the ward that make such a difference. The staff on Docking Ward have been fantastic.”
Mr Tuttle’s sister Beverley Armstrong, 47, from Hales, also has diabetes and had to have toes removed last June.
The siblings’ mum Averil Browne, 71, also from Hales, spent three months on the same ward at the end of last year, and ended up having to have part of her toe removed. Mrs Browne said: “I don’t think people realise how serious diabetes can be.”
Deputy sister Joanna Wright said it was nice to hear that patients were pleased with their care. She said: “All the team work really hard. It’s a busy ward and they all put in 110 per cent.”
source: eveningnews24.co.uk
Amputation Claims
Mr Tuttle, 47, first developed a problem with one of his feet in 2001 after stepping on a nail while working as a machine operator for a demolition company.
The wound refused to heal and he ended up having to have toes removed. By 2007, it had got so bad that his left leg had to be amputated and the Langley man was given an epidural, instead of having the surgery conducted under full general anaesthetic, and watched as the surgeons removed the limb. He said: “It was fascinating to see. The surgeons have operated on me in the past, and you couldn’t want for a better team of surgeons. They fought like hell to save my leg.”
Just over a week ago, Mr Tuttle had to have his remaining right leg removed, and said he had found it difficult to come to terms with losing both, but having the same team look after him this time around had been a great reassurance to him.
He said: “I’m feeling a lot better since I have had the leg off, but how I’m going to get on at home I don’t know. Thanks to the surgeons’ skill I’m still alive today, but it’s also the nurses on the ward that make such a difference. The staff on Docking Ward have been fantastic.”
Mr Tuttle’s sister Beverley Armstrong, 47, from Hales, also has diabetes and had to have toes removed last June.
The siblings’ mum Averil Browne, 71, also from Hales, spent three months on the same ward at the end of last year, and ended up having to have part of her toe removed. Mrs Browne said: “I don’t think people realise how serious diabetes can be.”
Deputy sister Joanna Wright said it was nice to hear that patients were pleased with their care. She said: “All the team work really hard. It’s a busy ward and they all put in 110 per cent.”
source: eveningnews24.co.uk
Amputation Claims
Yorkshire medical botches cost £150 a minute
Negligence in Yorkshire’s hospitals and clinics is costing the taxpayer more than £150 per minute, with a third of the money going to lawyers.
Botched treatments carried out across the region have left the NHS with an annual bill of more than £80m and facing a rising tide of compensation claims.
Health bodies received at least 1,281 claims or reports of clinical mistakes between April 2009 and March 2010, a 10 per cent increase in a year.
The soaring costs have prompted Ministers to draft new laws which would cut the legal bills the taxpayer must foot when the NHS loses a negligence case.
But there are fears the money-saving reforms will make it harder for injured patients to claim compensation and result in fewer mistakes coming to light.
Settling claims against health bodies in the region cost at least £80.4m in 2009-10 – a nine per cent rise on 2008-09, when the total bill came to at least £73.8m.
More than £54m of the sum was paid in damages, while at least £26m was spent on legal costs incurred by claimants and the public body which handles clinical negligence cases, the NHS Litigation Authority.
Figures published by the authority reveal that almost £10m was paid out after cases involving the Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Health Authority.
Payouts for claims against the region’s NHS trusts came to at least £68.4m, a 17 per cent increase on the previous year, led by Leeds (£10.2m), North Lincolnshire and Goole (£8.6m), Mid Yorkshire (£6.9m) and Sheffield (£6.8m).
Claims involving primary care trusts resulted in a total payout of at least £2m, more than half of which went to lawyers.
Payments relating to sub-standard care for pregnant women and babies accounted for more than a quarter of the overall bill.
Once a claim is settled, cash is paid by the litigation authority, which means it does not come out of a health body’s budget.
But bodies must make an annual contribution to the authority’s clinical negligence schemes, calculated by how many operations they carry out and how risky those operations are.
Contributions by the region’s trusts rose by 76 per cent between 2008-09 and 2009-10, up to £82.3m.
The Government has outlined proposed changes to the system, expected to come into force next year, which would prevent the litigation authority having to pay additional costs, such as lawyers’ success fees and claimants’ insurance premiums, when it loses a case.
Ministers have also considered withdrawing legal aid for most clinical negligence claims.
The chief executive of the charity Action against Medical Accidents, Peter Walsh, said he was “very concerned” by the proposals.
Mr Walsh said: “Whilst they might and probably would reduce the bill to the NHS, there is no getting away from the fact it would be at the expense of individuals who have been injured by negligence in the NHS.
“For a number of people it would remove the possibility of access to justice.
“The lawyers we are consulting with are telling us that, if all this goes through, they would anticipate taking on 50 per cent fewer cases.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “It is crucially important for victims of clinical negligence to have access to legal representation in order to claim compensation from those responsible, and people with valid cases will continue to be able to use Conditional Fee Agreements (CFA) – often referred to as ‘no win, no fee’ deals.
“The Government has proposed changes to CFAs so that they are fair for both claimants and defendants.”
source: yorkshirepost.co.uk
Yorkshire Claims
Botched treatments carried out across the region have left the NHS with an annual bill of more than £80m and facing a rising tide of compensation claims.
Health bodies received at least 1,281 claims or reports of clinical mistakes between April 2009 and March 2010, a 10 per cent increase in a year.
The soaring costs have prompted Ministers to draft new laws which would cut the legal bills the taxpayer must foot when the NHS loses a negligence case.
But there are fears the money-saving reforms will make it harder for injured patients to claim compensation and result in fewer mistakes coming to light.
Settling claims against health bodies in the region cost at least £80.4m in 2009-10 – a nine per cent rise on 2008-09, when the total bill came to at least £73.8m.
More than £54m of the sum was paid in damages, while at least £26m was spent on legal costs incurred by claimants and the public body which handles clinical negligence cases, the NHS Litigation Authority.
Figures published by the authority reveal that almost £10m was paid out after cases involving the Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Health Authority.
Payouts for claims against the region’s NHS trusts came to at least £68.4m, a 17 per cent increase on the previous year, led by Leeds (£10.2m), North Lincolnshire and Goole (£8.6m), Mid Yorkshire (£6.9m) and Sheffield (£6.8m).
Claims involving primary care trusts resulted in a total payout of at least £2m, more than half of which went to lawyers.
Payments relating to sub-standard care for pregnant women and babies accounted for more than a quarter of the overall bill.
Once a claim is settled, cash is paid by the litigation authority, which means it does not come out of a health body’s budget.
But bodies must make an annual contribution to the authority’s clinical negligence schemes, calculated by how many operations they carry out and how risky those operations are.
Contributions by the region’s trusts rose by 76 per cent between 2008-09 and 2009-10, up to £82.3m.
The Government has outlined proposed changes to the system, expected to come into force next year, which would prevent the litigation authority having to pay additional costs, such as lawyers’ success fees and claimants’ insurance premiums, when it loses a case.
Ministers have also considered withdrawing legal aid for most clinical negligence claims.
The chief executive of the charity Action against Medical Accidents, Peter Walsh, said he was “very concerned” by the proposals.
Mr Walsh said: “Whilst they might and probably would reduce the bill to the NHS, there is no getting away from the fact it would be at the expense of individuals who have been injured by negligence in the NHS.
“For a number of people it would remove the possibility of access to justice.
“The lawyers we are consulting with are telling us that, if all this goes through, they would anticipate taking on 50 per cent fewer cases.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “It is crucially important for victims of clinical negligence to have access to legal representation in order to claim compensation from those responsible, and people with valid cases will continue to be able to use Conditional Fee Agreements (CFA) – often referred to as ‘no win, no fee’ deals.
“The Government has proposed changes to CFAs so that they are fair for both claimants and defendants.”
source: yorkshirepost.co.uk
Yorkshire Claims
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
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