Paula Hill may very well be working on the most challenging case ever when she dedicates herself to more justice for a young mother who lost her infant son, likely due to medical negligence. Here are the insights of a lawyer who handled the most tragic case we could think of.
It all started one year ago when a young child passed away. The tragic fate of 23-month old Ayaan made the headlines in the United Kingdom and all around the world. This is how Paula Hill (LawNet, EJ UK) became the lawyer of a grieving mother.
'He was the victim of brain cancer', Paula explains, 'and his mother felt like more should have been done to help him. She had been unhappy from the outset that no one was listening to her, to her warnings, to everything she noticed was happening to her son. Her own General Practitioner was supportive but she had the impression that everyone else was neglecting her son in failing to properly investigate his illness. So she came to talk to us following the advice of the local law centre.'
Paula started working on medical negligence cases when she joined Metcalfes, the lawfirm that currently employs her. 'They have a very specialised team of lawyers entirely devoted to such cases. It was a natural progression in my career, I began working in the field of personal injury, both from a Claimant and latterly Defendant perspective. Because medical negligence is such a specialised area, I wanted to develop my career and the best way was to apply to join the Metcalfes team.' Since then, Paula has been devoted to that field.
After hearing Ayaan's mother telling her about her story for the first time, Paula felt from the start that further investigation could and should be done. 'In such cases', she explains, 'you can invite the Coroner to open an inquest. Her investigation will provide a lot of information for the family although the inquest is in no way intended to apportion blame. She will ask all the health professionals involved in the case to provide statements. She also wished to obtain a statement from his mother because she was obviously with him twenty-four hours a day and she could observe everything that was going on.' Paula also had to browse through the complete medical records. 'You need the ability to look beyond the jargon of the medical profession, and to be able to identify what service they should have provided and whether or not they failed to do so', she adds.
In the end, the Coroner established there was a missed opportunity to diagnose Ayaan’s brain tumour. 'She identified at least one occasion in which he could have been examined more thoroughly' Paula said, 'had that examination took place then, on the balance of probability his life could have been prolonged, the very fact that this did not happen means it was too late for any intervention by the time Ayaan was admitted to hospital having collapsed. There were clear indications it was a brain tumour, such as an extended period of morning vomiting which is a big red flag for that condition in young children.' Obvously, Paula has learnt a lot about medicine during the course of this case and her career.
The very fact that it was a very young child dying in such a distressing way and that an opportunity to have prevented this particular condition existed but was missed, created a strong emotional response in the media. Paula said she feels positive about the impact she can have on such a case, not only helping clients rebuild themselves after a tragedy but creating legal precedents that hopefully would deter further negligence in the future. 'To do this job you need a sense of compassion and an inquiring mind. It is a very rewarding specialisation if you are able to help. Bear in mind you are often confronted with very challenging situations that could happen to any of us, and it can be very difficult and upsetting', warns Paula. 'But you will hopefully help make things better, even if not for the family you represent in a particular case who have already lost so much, but for anyone else who would benefit from lessons learned to prevent this situation recurring thanks to your work'.
The next step seems to be to advise the family with regard to obtaining compensation. 'At this point his mother did not receive compensation ', says Paula, 'and it is our job to consider and advise whether it is appropriate for a client to seek compensation or not. Such a claim would involve damages for his pain and suffering, bereavement, and the expenses such as the cost of the funeral. Based on the Coroner's findings, I would advise her to pursue such a claim in this case.' Hopefully, she will succeed.
