Litigation costs higher than the amount of compensation awarded for violation of patient rights. What was the case about?
Patient Ombudsman: A surprising end to a court case. Is this what a sense of justice looks like?
Published March 26, 2024 09:58
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The Patient Ombudsman website published information about an unusual settlement of a court case. The case concerned an incident from 2013, when the head of the surgery department allowed his son - a physiotherapy student - to actively participate in surgeries. Neither before nor after the surgery was the patient informed of the presence of an unauthorized person in the operating room.
Patient Ombudsman Bartlomiej Chmielowiec joined the lawsuit against the hospital. Several expert opinions were issued in the case. After 9 years, the court came to the conclusion that the participation of an unauthorized person in the operation did not translate into the patient's health condition, the deterioration of this condition, and to this extent the court dismissed the claim.
Nevertheless, the student's participation in the surgical procedure constitutes a culpable violation of the patient's rights, and for this reason the court awarded the patient the sum of PLN 20,000 as compensation for the violation of the patient's rights. Given the circumstances of the case, there would be nothing surprising in this, if not for the fact that at the same time the court charged the patient with court expenses in the amount of PLN 26,157.73 and litigation costs in the amount of PLN 3,617, making a total of PLN 29,774.73. The question itself arises - is this the sense of justice?
It should be noted that the Patient Ombudsman has asked all Presidents of Appellate and District Courts to take a pro-patient approach to the costs of medical malpractice cases. The Ombudsman reminded of the principle of equity expressed in the wording of Article 102 of the Code of Civil Procedure, which stipulates that in particularly justified cases, the court may order the losing party to pay only part of the costs or not charge it at all. Particularly since medical malpractice cases are among the most complicated, especially when it comes to taking evidence and proving the causal relationship between the event and the patient's injury.
The Patient Ombudsman disagrees with the aforementioned court decision and has appealed the cost order to a higher court.
Source: Patient Ombudsman
