Court Raises Compensation For Amputee Cameraman To Nearly Rm1 3mil

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Wee You Kheong had sued a private hospital and its surgeon for negligence, leading to the amputation of his left leg.
A three-member Court of Appeal panel said it found merit in the appeal by cameraman-videographer Wee You Kheong on the quantum of damages in his medical negligence suit.PUTRAJAYA: A cameraman and videographer whose left leg was amputated above the knee has been awarded an additional RM501,694 in damages after the Court of Appeal allowed his appeal on the quantum of compensation in a medical negligence suit today
The High Court had awarded Wee You Kheong RM783,000 in damages last year.
A three-member bench chaired by Justice Choo Kah Sing increased Wee’s compensation for pain, suffering, and loss of amenities from RM125,000 to RM300,000.
Wee was also awarded RM300,000 in aggravated damages over the conduct of an orthopaedic surgeon and a private hospital which the court said attempted to conceal their negligence.
The High Court had not granted aggravated damages despite finding sufficient grounds to do so.
The bench also awarded an additional RM26,694 for past and future expenses.
“We find merit in the appeal on quantum after reviewing the notes of evidence and submissions,” said Choo, who sat with Justices Firuz Jaffril and Nadzarin Wok Nordin.
The court ordered the surgeon and Putra Specialist Hospital (Melaka) Sdn Bhd to each pay RM30,000 in costs to Wee, 59.
Wee, who was sitting in the front passenger seat of a van, suffered injuries to his left leg when the vehicle and a lorry collided in Jasin, Melaka, on Aug 25, 2015.
He was initially treated at the Jasin district hospital before being transferred to Melaka Hospital.
His family later moved him to the private hospital, where the attending surgeon failed to detect a vascular injury, ultimately leading to the amputation.
Last year, the Melaka High Court found both the private hospital and the surgeon liable, awarding RM783,000 in damages and RM190,000 in costs.
Lawyers Karthi Kanthabalan, Alicia Chin and Lee Xin Yu represented Wee. Nik Hasrul Nik Hamdan appeared for the private hospital, and G Navamalar and Leena Subramaniam represented the surgeon. - FMT

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