The parents of a woman who died after her doctor failed to recognise the symptoms of deep vein thrombosis have agreed to a £151,000 settlement in her doctor negligence lawsuit.
Ray and Angela Hennessy, had brought the legal action against Dr Hassan Al Bayyari, following the untimely death of their daughter Julie in March 2007. It was claimed in the case taken against Dr Bayyari that Julie had visited him twice earlier in the month to complain of pains in her leg which she believed were due to a skiing accident four weeks previously.
Despite Julie raising the prospect of deep vein thrombosis, Dr Bayyari failed to prescribe any medication for her (Julie) or refer her to the hospital for further tests. Two days following Julie’s second visit to Dr Bayyari’s surgery she was found dead in her home. A post-mortem into Julie’s death uncovered that she had died from deep vein thrombosis/pulmonary embolism, exacerbated by the oral contraceptive prescribed for her by Dr Bayyari.
After seeking legal advice, the Hennessy’s opted to bring a doctor negligence claim against Dr Bayyari which was due to be heard in the High Court. However, just before the trial was due to commence, Mr Justice John Quirke was told that the two parties had agreed to the out-of-court settlement and that the matter was now resolved.