More Than 600 Patients Recalled Over Concerns at Walsall Hospital
Earlier this year we saw the recall of 600 patients by Walsall Hospital regarding potential medical negligence for their shoulder operations. Spire Healthcare’s Little Aston Hospital in Birmingham is next to to see the recall of patients where Mr Shah performed surgery between 2010 and 2020.
After receiving arm surgery from Mian Munawar Shah at Walsall Hospital or Little Aston Hospital, some patients have lost the use of their arm. As a result, the patients are living in constant pain and suffering from mental health struggling, unable to sleep.
Mr Shah has since been suspended and the hospital has set up a helpline. In addition, the hospital will send hundreds of letters to patients who may have been affected.
AWH’s medical negligence solicitors have recently started representing a client who was tried at the Spire Hospital in Birmingham. Please get in touch with our expert solicitors as soon as possible if you or a loved one has had an operation at either Walsall Manor Hospital or Spire Healthcare’s Spire Little Aston Hospital, and you suspect the operation was one of the following:
- You suspect the surgery was unnecessary .
- The surgery did not improve your conditions.
- The surgery made your condition worse and caused you further pain and discomfort.
Our team can advise you on a free no-obligation consultation.
Ms Glover Case Study
Ms Glover had two operations by Mr Shah. It was later revealed that the first operation was not necessary. Additionally, during the operation, a screw had been placed inappropriately.
Ms Glover’s partner, Simon Roberts states she was in “constant pain” and was unable to raise her arm or grip things in her right hand.
As a result, Ms Glover has been suffering from poor mental health and had to be sectioned after a suicide attempt.
“Angela’s not confident to hold a baby and that’s very frustrating if you can’t pick your grandchildren up and hold them. I see the tears in her eyes sometimes and that breaks my heart too.”
The couple has been trying to seek answers, but Mr Roberts says, “We’ve had to fight and demand every step of the way and I’m still not sure we’ve been told what’s happened – we’ve still not had any proper explanation.”
Mr Crowley Case Study
In 2019, Mr Crowley had an operation after dislocating his shoulder. Mr Shah replaced the joint after an unsuccessful first operation. Since the operation, Mr Crowley states he is struggling with basic tasks. This could be tasks such as buttoning up a shirt or holding a cup of tea.
“It’s affecting me quite bad, there’s a lot of stuff I want to do that I can’t do,” he said.
21 Medical Negligence Claims Against Mr Shah
Joanne Aldridge was privately operated on by Mr Shah back in 2010. She received the operation at a hospital run by Spire Healthcare.
The trust has admitted to liability and Ms Alridge has since received compensation. This comes after her radial nerve was severed by Mr Shah. As a result, Ms Alridge has been in terrible pain and is unable to lift her arm.
In 2016, after Ms Aldridge’s pay-out, she wrote to the General Medical Council’s (GMC) fitness to practise department. In the letter, she asked for them to investigate Mr Shah because of what happened to her. She said she felt sure she was not the only one.
However, the GMC declined. They said her operation was longer than five years ago. Additionally, they said the Walsall Hospital had given Mr Shah a clean bill of health during a revalidation process in 2014.
Ms Aldridge added, “I tried to stop him because I knew that I wasn’t the first and I wouldn’t be the last. I tried to get something done so others didn’t have their lives ruined.”
There were 21 medical negligence claims relating to Mr Shah’s surgery between 2010 and 2018.
Investigations into Mr Shah’s Individual Work
In 2020, Walsall Healthcare Trust contacted the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS). As a result, they carried out a general review of surgery and then a further review of Mr Shah’s individual work.
A recall of his patients was recommended by the RCS.
Mr Shah has been given an interim order by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS). This stops him from doing laterjet procedures or shoulder joint replacements without supervision.
The High Court has also extended interim measures on Mr Shah that were imposed in 2021.
Medical director at the Walsall trust Dr Manjeet Shehmar told the BBC there had been a failure to carry out multi-disciplinary team meetings and some of the procedures should have been performed in a specialist orthopaedic hospital rather than at Walsall Manor.
Chief executive David Loughton, said the trust was not aware of any issues to do with Mr Shah’s surgery on knee or hip joints.
For the affected patients, there are questions about how risks were not spotted sooner.
Mr Roberts says “How has this surgeon been allowed to carry on for 15 years and be in a position three years ago to operate on my partner? “Why was he not stopped before? How was he allowed to carry on unchecked and no one has noticed anything? I find that very hard.”
An Apology to Patients from Walsall Hospital
Mr Loughton apologised to patients stating that he “personally met with some of those patients and I am acutely aware of the debilitating effects that this has had on them and how in a lot of cases it has changed their lives”.
A Spire Healthcare spokesperson said: “Mr Munawar Shah has not practised at Spire Little Aston since March 2020.
“We have liaised closely with the Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust throughout their review of his practice and continue to do so. As a result, we are reviewing whether we need to contact and offer support to patients who had particular treatments with Mr Shah at Spire.”
“We understand the distress and uncertainty this may cause to patients. Patient safety and the quality of the care we provide to patients remains Spire Healthcare’s highest priority.”
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