UBC Hospital patient awarded $5M compensation

 

“UBC Hospital must pay a Richmond man about $5 million for losing track of a CT scan and failing to diagnose his debilitating condition in time, the B.C. Supreme Court has ruled. When Shawn Kahlon went to his general practitioner 10 years ago reporting back pain, he was referred to a specialist at UBC Hospital where a CT scan was done.  But the CT scan was misfiled and never followed up on. The court ruled the scan should have triggered an investigation that would have led to a diagnosis of spinal TB meningitis. Treatment would then have been ordered, and Kahlon would likely have made a full recovery, the ruling said.  The CT scan was eventually recovered in 2000 but by then, his condition had gotten worse. Kahlon, now 42, is incapacitated, unemployable and in need of round-the-clock care, according to the ruling.  The B.C. Supreme Court exonerated Kahlon’s family doctor and the specialists who saw him and found Kahlon 30 per cent liable for ignoring a request for a follow up exam.  But the court found UBC Hospital 70 per cent liable for misfiling his original CT scan and failing to inform his doctors that no followup test was done. The $5 million estimate is based on a life expectancy for Kahlon of age 60.”  CBC 

 

The  ‘lack of personal responsibility’ is always inexcusable.  I know from first hand experience that the  patient  firstly also has to be involved  to make the health care system work for them. One merely being too lazy and Relying on the supposed professionalism, help of doctors, and any others to now next take control of dealing fully with your own health problems does not insure, guarantee  success… rather this bad approach  may not get much good done for you.

 

It is important to not only to get a  good  Doctor referrals, to tell the doctor what you think is wrong, and to ask the Doctor the right questions, but it is also important that  that you persist until you get acquire, satisfactory answers, and to insure that you do get all of the necessary follow-up appointments. THIS MAY MEAN VISITING MORE THAN ONE DOCTOR NOW AS WELL.  

 

Many people complain about the health care system when they themselves now have not done all that they should do to insure they get, got a good medical service.

 

Firstly NOW it a real bad advice to even visit a doctor alone, for the doctors are the most afraid of a pending lawsuit, so always do also take a loud mouthed witness with you when you got to the Hospital, or  to any doctor’s visits. 

 

Secondly on your first visit you cannot  just tell your doctor that it is his job alone to find out what is wrong with you, or that  ‘something is wrong with me’ merely , and next expect even then  to be fully taken care of.  You have to help the doctor to find out what is wrong with you by telling him what the pain symptoms are.

 

Doctors  too often are often busy persons in our poorly managed health care system so it is very easy for your health needs to slip through the cracks like this poor fellow above. 

 

When  you get tests or scans done make sure your doctor not only sees them and reviews them but that he gives you some real feedback. Ask him what the results showed. See if he really looked at them.

 

Something as important as your  good health it is never  adequate enough to leave  completely in the hands of others,  what ever experts though they may claim to be.

 

I know firsthand there are good and bad doctors, and good and poorly, badly managed Hospitals now as well.

 

For a few years I was not getting enough looking after from the local medical establishment, while they were busy charging with their services with my health card. So I next had merely informed my main doctor that I was writing a report to the federal and provincial health minister of how I was being treated by him, and well next the doctor started to take his work seriously and to give me adequate care..

  

By the way the government of British Columbia, Canada   is already well known for not caring about the poor people, the citizens good welfare or legal, human rights.. they seem to be self centered, selfish  and crappy.