Barbara Gayle, Staff Reporter

THE SUPREME Court has ordered the Government to pay $5 million in damages for negligence to a 25-year-old man, whose left arm was amputated at the Cornwall Regional Hospital in St James when he was 11 years old.

Anthony Jackson, of Retirement, St James, had to wait for 13 years before his case was heard. Jackson was also awarded US$50,000 (J$3.5 million) to purchase a maun-electric prosthesis, and US$10,000 (J$710,000) for maintenance of the prosthesis.

The suit was filed by Jackson's mother, Mavis Arnold, in 1995 because Jackson was a minor.

The boy fell and broke his hand on January 31, 1994, while he was playing with a friend at home. There was a cut on the arm and Jackson was taken to hospital the same day.

Negligent

Jackson's arm was amputated three to four inches below the shoulder on February 3, 1994, because gas gangrene developed in the arm.

Justice Horace Marsh, in awarding damages in Jackson's favour, said the doctor or doctors who saw him on admission were negligent in treating him.

The judge said he had no difficulty finding that the gas gangrene (a bacterial infection) which forced the amputation of the claimant's left arm was essentially caused by the deficient treatment.

The judge referred to the evidence of a consultant orthopaedic surgeon, who said the treatment accorded to Jackson on his admission to the hospital was not consistent with recognised and accepted procedures of treating open fractures sustained in a fall to the ground.

Not treated as emergency

Some procedures, such as debride-ment and irrigation, to clean the wound and remove dead tissues or dirt within six hours of the patient's injury, were not done on time. Conducting irrigation within six hours of the injury would have been the best opportunity to prevent infection.

The medical evidence was that, because of the open fracture, Jackson's case should have been treated as an emergency.

The hospital record indicated that Jackson was injured around 4 p.m. on January 31, 1994, and was admitted to hospital at 6:42 p.m. However, debridement and cleaning of the open fracture was not done until after 10 a.m. the following day.

barbara.gayle@gleanerjm.com