The Malaysian government was ordered by the Kuala Lumpur High Court to pay more than RM2.28 million in damages to a teenage boy who was left permanently disabled due to medical negligence.
This comes after Judicial Commissioner Gan Techiong ruled that a junior medical officer and the then-head of the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department at Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL) were liable, reported NST.
Suffered cerebral palsy after birth
The lawsuit was filed by the teenager’s mother in January 2023 on the teen’s behalf, who was born on Feb 11, 2010.
Following an emergency caesarean procedure which wasn’t carried out in a timely fashion, he was diagnosed with severe cerebral palsy.
In the lawsuit, the plaintiff alleged that the delay had robbed the teen’s chance of being born without brain damage, while the defendants maintained that a placental separation caused the outcome to be unavoidable.
There were also dividing takes over the teen’s life expectancy by expert witnesses, with one projecting it at 44 years while another said it was only 29 years.
M’sian teen awarded RM2.28mil by court
In making his ruling, Gan said the teen suffered the most severe level of cerebral palsy, which rendered him unable to lift his head and required tube-feeding for life, adding he was “saddened” by the teen’s condition.
I have no doubt that both experts felt sympathy for the plaintiff, too. However, with respect, it is incumbent upon us to detach ourselves emotionally when it comes to the professional evaluation of this case.
“I bear in mind that damages to be awarded to the plaintiff must be in accordance with legal principles and not sympathy.
“There should be no unjust enrichment of the plaintiff at the expense of taxpayers,” he said.
Gan ruled that the medical officers should have sprung into action much quicker due to the high-risk nature of the pregnancy and fixed the maximum life expectancy at 29 years as medical data showed the odds of survival beyond 29 only stood at 26%.
The teen was eventually awarded  RM300,000 in general damages, RM458,400 in special damages, RM51,300 in pre-trial damages, and RM1.47 million for future general damages.
A 5% interest per annum on most of the sums was also ordered by Gan but he did not grant aggravated damages on the basis that the teen’s family had waited for over 10 years before filing the suit.
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