17 February 2013

NHS MISTAKES: 56 WRONG TESTICLES REMOVED

From UK DAILY MAIL

NHS pays out £1million in compensation to men who have had the wrong TESTICLE removed

  • Fifty-six claims made by men affected by medical blunders in four years
  • NHS pays out £20,000 if wrong testicle has been removed
  • Most common reason for payout is when testicular torsion is misdiagnosed
By Daily Mail Reporter
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Blunders: The NHS can pay out £20,000 if the wrong testicle has been removed
Blunders: The NHS can pay out £20,000 if the wrong testicle has been removed
More than £1million in damages have been paid out by the NHS to men who have had the wrong testicle removed by surgeons. 
In the last four years there have been 56 successful claims made by men who have been affected by medical blunders, according to the National Health Service Litigation Authority.
In most cases the men didn't need surgery at all and in others surgeons also had to remove the second testicle. 
The NHS normally pays out around £20,000 if the wrong testicle has been removed.
Roger Goss, co-director of Patient Concern, told The Sun: 'It is amazing that surgeons don't always take enough care to guarantee that they are removing the correct testicle.
'Despite the huge total compensation bill, individual payments sound modest for wrecking men's lives.'
According to the figures £1.3million has been paid out since 2009. 
Men who have been left infertile can be rewarded up to £70,000. 
But the most common reason for payouts is when doctors misdiagnose testicular torsion — where the tubes inside the body get twisted, cutting off the blood supply.
Other claims result from hernia operations where the blood supply to the testicle is accidentally cut off.