Durban - A Warner Beach pastor is suing Life Entabeni Hospital for more than R29 million in damages claiming the negligence of the high care nursing staff, after an operation, led to his “clinical death”.
Jan Daniel Roux claimed in court papers on Tuesday that he now cannot walk or do normal daily functions without assistance and suffers distress because of his inability to breathe normally.
The Life Healthcare group intends to defend the matter when it is set down for trial in the Durban High Court. A date is still to be set.
Roux’s legal team went to court on Tuesday to compel the Life Healthcare group to respond to their request for information to prepare for the trial.
According to Roux’s claim, he was admitted to Entabeni Hospital in November 2011 for a surgical procedure to his lower back. He said his doctors indicated there were no risks to his life, his well-being and post-operative quality of life.
Roux said he was told the operation would benefit him and eliminate any previous neurological pain or risks.
Before the surgery, he said he could breathe normally; had no lung damage or lung disease; and could walk and carry out everyday activities with minor difficulty because of his lower back condition.
After the operation, he was admitted to the hospital’s high care facility. He said his post-operative condition was confirmed as “satisfactory”.
He said he was given morphine during the operation and thereafter Cyclimorph, a morphine drug, administered at various times by the nursing staff.
Roux said the nursing staff allegedly did not follow standard health care and nursing procedures, specifically relating to administering this morphine drug and other sedative drugs, and apparently also ignored the doctor’s instructions.
He said according to hospital records, he had an allergic reaction to Cyclimorph and the anti-inflammatory drugs.
Roux has argued that because of the hospital and staff’s gross negligence, and while still in their care, he contracted a hospital-acquired infection or pneumonia.
Despite apparent warnings to nursing staff by his fiancée, Bertina Steenkamp, about his critical condition and symptoms, Roux said he suffered respiratory failure and cardiac arrest, which led to his “clinical death”.
He claimed the hospital staff had failed to connect him to any medical monitoring equipment, nor did they check his respiratory and related medical condition. He said the staff failed to inform his doctor or surgeon, or the doctor on duty, of his condition.
“Due to the gross negligence or intentional omission of the (hospital’s) nursing staff, (Roux’s) lung and heart failure, coma and clinical death resulted in trauma and emergency procedures being applied to him to be resuscitated, his court papers read.
Roux said the staff used a defibrillator and he had to be placed on a ventilator and treated in the hospital’s ICU.
Roux further claimed that the staff did not make a note of this 40-minute ordeal or his treatment as a result.
Since his operation and treatment, he said he had suffered permanent “serious and severe lung damage” which has caused “major personal injury and disability” as well as illness which has reduced his life expectancy.
He had not recovered from the surgical procedure, he said, due to his injury and neglect while in the hospital’s care.
At the time of hospital admission, Roux was a pastor in the “Church on Wheels”.
Since the operation he said he had been unable to carry out his duties properly and had lost income.
In response, the Life Healthcare Group has asked Roux for copies of all his hospital and past medical expenses as well proof of past income.
The group has argued that he has failed to specify which of these “alleged failures” by staff had led to his “alleged injuries” and how each of the claimed failures had caused the harm he has complained about.
Daily News