Whilst she made a recovery from her initial injuries, she has still not made a full recovery from the MSSA bug she contracted. She became very very ill, was partially paralysed for months and had to learn to walk again during her recovery.

The main reason for the significant amount of the award is that as a result of contracting the bug Lesley Ash will not be able to pursue an active acting career. Whereas before the bug she was at the height of her career, having appeared in "Men Behaving Badly" amongst other programmes she was set to continue to receive other good roles. The illness prevents her from every pursuing such a future acting career and this is the main reason why her claim is so high.

The court papers issued said Lesley Ash "suffered mild paraparesis, loss of some power and motor control of the legs" and continue with "It is unlikely that she would have been able to return to an active role as an actress."

Her compensation payout relates to both money actually lost, ie jobs she could not do, but also jobs she would have been offered in the future had she been fit to work again.

Medical Negligence, now often referred to as Clinical Negligence can arise out of many circumstances but broadly speaking claims will fall into one of three categories:

* a mistake being made by the professional whilst carrying out the treatment such as prescribing the wrong drugs or carrying out an operation incorrectly

* an omission being made by the professional such as failing to diagnose a condition or failing to refer a patient for a scan that would have resulted in a condition being diagnosed

* failure to obtain full and appropriate consent prior to carrying our treatment or warn of the potential risks and side effects of treatment

The medical profession usually provide a caring service with a high standard of excellence. However there are occasions when patients treated on the NHS or privately may be the victim of a medical accident. When that accident is attributable to incompetence or lack of care, it may be possible to bring a claim for clinical negligence compensation.

What Action Should a Hospital Take?

Once a patient has been diagnosed as having a hospital acquired infection, urgent steps must be taken to prevent the infection spreading to other patients. The site of the infection needs to be cleaned and treated. The patient should be isolated from others to prevent the condition being passed on and hospital staff should take extra precautions after coming into contact with the infected patient. Protocols have been implemented requiring a strict standard of hygiene for hospitals and medical staff. If these standards are not maintained there may be a claim for medical negligence.

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