Pretoria - Her complaint about a noisy toilet door in a ward at Unitas Hospital in Centurion came back to haunt her - she slipped on the oil used by maintenance staff on the creaking hinges.
Lizle Meyer, 38, of Centurion, slipped and fell later that afternoon when she went to the bathroom. She broke her ankle and is now suing the hospital for R670000 in damages.
The hospital never replied to or defended the summons issued against it.
And the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, on Monday, by means of default judgment, ruled that the hospital was 100% liable for any damages Meyer could prove she suffered as a result of her fall.
Meyer stated in court papers that she suffered from neurological problems and was admitted to the hospital in August last year.
She was to spend a few days and had to undergo treatment, she said.
The creaking toilet door to the en-suite bathroom bothered her while she was trying to get some rest in her hospital bed.
She asked a nurse to request the hospital’s maintenance department to do something about the noisy door.
The response was swift and a man working for the maintenance department soon arrived and sprayed the hinges with an oily lubricant.
Meyer said she had to use the bathroom later that afternoon but when she went through the door she slipped and fell.
This, she said, was because the floor was oily due to the spray used on the hinges.
She blamed the hospital for the injuries and said as the employer of the maintenance department, it was liable for that department’s conduct.
Meyer said the staffer who fixed the noisy door was negligent as he had to ensure that the floor was properly cleaned.
Alternatively, there should have been warning signs erected, warning patients and others who used the toilet that the floor was slippery.
She said that apart from tearing her ligaments and breaking her ankle, she also suffered emotional trauma due to the fall.
Meyer is still waiting for the medical experts’ reports regarding the injuries she suffered.
Once she receives them the case will be back in court for a decision on the amount of damages she should receive.