Dh10,000 award for Abu Dhabi woman injected with unlicensed substance during breast surgery

Woman awarded Dh10,000 compensation over botched surgery in which she was injected with an unlicensed substance.

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ABU DHABI // A woman has been awarded Dh10,000 compensation over botched breast surgery in which she was injected with an unlicensed substance.

The Civil Court found the clinic had carried out the procedure without adequately examining her.

It noted that the substance was not registered with the Ministry of Health and that using it on women with a family history of cancer was banned. The woman said the surgery had left her emotionally damaged and requiring psychiatric treatment because she feared getting cancer, especially given her mother had died from the disease.

The victim was seeking Dh1 million from the clinic and her surgeon, arguing they had breached health laws.

A medical committee examined the case and found the woman was in good health but agreed the centre was negligent in its treatment of her and had breached health laws.

The committee found that neither the centre nor the surgeon had made adequate enquiries about the patient’s history. Her case file had no evidence she had undergone relevant pre-surgery tests.

The court accepted the committee’s findings and awarded the woman Dh10,000 in emotional damages.

hdajani@thenational.ae