Man in Sharjah demands Dh5 million compensation for wrong surgery

The Sharjah Court of Appeal has ordered a private hospital and a doctor to compensate an Arab by paying Dh900,000 for a medical error which led to 50 per cent permanent disability of the patient. The Sharjah Court of First Instance had ordered Dh500,000 to be paid as compensation, but the patient, a Jordanian national, appealed and asked for Dh5 million compensation. Advocate Juma Ahmed Maleeh presented a defence sheet at the court of appeal. The patient, who suffered from inguinal hernia, was first tested negative at a Dubai hospital. But in July 2012, he was admitted to a hospital in Sharjah where a surgery was done and an artery in his left testicle was cut. After he was discharged from hospital, the patient was in severe pain that left him unable to work or sleep. When he returned to the hospital, doctors discovered that there was damage to his left testicle due to lack of blood flow to the area. Further tests indicated a complete lack of blood flow and severe ischaemia, forcing doctors at a private hospital to remove the testicle. After the surgery, the pain subsided, but the patient claimed that he had suffered heavy financial losses as well as mental trauma. The patient filed a complaint with the Court of First Instance in Sharjah, which referred the matter to the medical committee. The committee decided that the surgery - which led to testicular atrophy and a cut artery - was conducted without prior approval from the patient and led to 50 per cent permanent disability. The court ruled to compensate the patient by paying him Dh500,000 because of the hospital's medical error. But the patient appealed, mentioning the psychological and physical impact of the surgery.