Medical negligence case study: Alfie Buck

When Samantha Buck went to Princess Royal Hospital to deliver her baby in 2006, she expected the staff to provide her with exceptional care. Instead, the midwives failed to monitor her baby’s heartbeat for twelve hours and refused to deliver him by caesarean section. As a result, baby Alfie was deprived of oxygen at birth causing debilitating injury to his brain. Alfie has cerebral palsy.

Though his intelligence was largely spared, today seven year old Alfie is wheelchair bound and suffers from intense and frequent muscle spasms. The bright boy communicates using special technology and requires constant care.

The Brighton & Sussex University Hospital’s NHS Trust acknowledged the claim that Alfie’s condition could have been prevented with proper monitoring and admitted full responsibility for Alfie’s injuries. The Buck family was awarded over eight million pounds in compensation to be used for Alfie’s life long care.

Samantha Buck was pleased with the settlement, although she knows that no amount of money will make up for the negligence that caused injury to her son and family. “Not long after he was born the doctors told us brain scans showed severe abnormalities and it was hard not to be bitter or angry,” she said after the settlement. “It just felt very unfair as Alfie didn’t deserve it.”

“Caring for a child with cerebral palsy has to be the toughest job in the world as it is 24/7 and consumes your life.”

The compensation settlement will be used to provide Alfie with a wheelchair accessible home. The new home will also have room for specialized equipment and quarters for a live-in carer. Additionally, it will be used to fund physiotherapy and specialized education for Alfie. The family also plans to purchase wheelchair accessible transportation to get Alfie to and from his various medical appointments.

The Buck family first filed a medical negligence claim in 2008.