The widow and children of a well-known Dublin solicitor who died after an operation to prevent a blushing condition went wrong are to receive €5 million in settlement of a High Court action for damages.
Father-of-three Alan Synnott (44) died in March 2003, a few days after undergoing surgery at the Bon Secours Private Hospital.
His widow, Eleanor, with an address in south Dublin, had sued Austin Leahy, a surgeon attached to the Bon Secours hospital, Glasnevin, Dublin, who had carried out the operation. Liability was admitted and the case was due to proceed as an assessment of damages only.
After negotiations between the sides, Mr Justice Vivian Lavan yesterday approved the settlement of some €4 million for Ms Synnott and over €200,000 each for the couple's three children - Lisa (13), William (12) and Lydia (7).
An inquest into the death of Mr Synnott heard he suffered a haemorrhage after a vein and artery were damaged during the operation in March 2003. His condition had deteriorated and a scan showed later that he had suffered brain damage.
Mr Synnott was one of the country's best known personal injuries solicitors and was the principal of Lawline Solicitors in Christchurch Hall, Dublin.
In her proceedings, Ms Synnott claimed her husband had been referred to Mr Leahy on March 11th, 2003. She said he was suffering from social phobia and facial blushing which was interfering with his ability to speak in public and run his office.
The letter of referral indicated Mr Synnott was seeking advice about undergoing an operation to prevent the blushing, it was claimed. Mr Leahy saw the solicitor on March 18th and formed the view he would benefit from the operation and obtained a written consent form, Ms Synnott claimed.
It was claimed the consent form indicated the risks from the operation were dry hand, compensatory sweating, Horner's Syndrome and the need for a chest drain.
On March 27th, Mr Synnott was admitted to the Bon Secours. The operation involved inserting a tubular device into the chest cavity. Following unsuccessful attempts at insertion, the angle of entry was changed, it was alleged.
It was claimed the subclavian vessels and lung were damaged and massive bleeding occurred. Emergency surgery had to be carried out and Mr Synnott, it was alleged, lost more than three times his total blood volume in a three and a half hour period.
The next day, Mr Synnott was transferred to the Beaumont Hospital intensive care unit. He required urgent decompression and he was taken to the operating theatre. Over the next 24 hours, he showed no evidence of recovery of cerebral function and on March 30th tests showed he had suffered brain stem death.