Woman who suffered complications from vaginal mesh implant awarded at least £1m

A woman who suffered traumatic complications from a vaginal mesh implant has been awarded a record settlement of at least £1 million by the NHS.

Yvette Greenway-Mansfield, 59, had a mesh implant at Coventry University Hospital in 2009 and suffered serious complications. Her medical negligence claim against the hospital trust found that the operation was performed prematurely and unnecessarily and that her consent form was amended to include additional risks after Greenway-Mansfield signed it.

Greenway-Mansfield said the award of the compensation was a “huge relief”, but added that many other women who have suffered similar harm have received little or no compensation, and criticized the government’s actions. the inability to establish an agency for financial compensation for victims.

“I’m not alone. There are thousands of me,” she said. “There should be a pot of money to compensate these women and a care plan in place as an automatic response to people who have been damaged by the network. It comes down to a perception of women and women’s health issues. We’ve all had enough of it.”

Greenway-Mansfield first visited her GP in 2009 after developing abdominal discomfort and increased urination frequency, which made her concerned about drinking fluids. Her symptoms were attributed to uterine prolapse and a consultant gynecologist recommended a vaginal hysterectomy with insertion of a transvaginal tape (TVT) mesh implant.

Initially, the surgery appeared to have been successful, but in 2017, during a business trip to New Zealand, she began experiencing pain and bleeding. “On my return to the UK it was suggested that the mesh may have eroded into the vaginal wall,” said Greenway-Mansfield. “I was shocked to hear this information as I had no idea such complications could occur.”

Her pain increased, but she was told there was no clear medical solution. In February 2020, the mesh was removed following a private referral to Spire Bristol Hospital, but she now suffers from urinary and faecal incontinence and chronic pain.

The claim revealed that Greenway-Mansfield’s form consenting to the procedures was altered after she signed it. The hospital version included a cystoscopy and additional risks including failure, tape erosion, pain, overactive bladder and deep vein thrombosis. These were not on the original Greenway-Mansfield copy, which she had kept. “I couldn’t believe what I saw,” Greenway-Mansfield said. “I felt completely vindicated.”

“If I had not kept that documentation, I could have found myself in court, subjected to a capricious trial and labeled a liar,” she said. “It breaks my heart for women who have to go through this.”

It was also believed that the surgery was performed before other options, such as physiotherapy and bladder training, had been explored.

Neil Claytonclinical negligence partner at Lime Solicitors, who represented Greenway-Mansfield, said: “The University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust owed a duty of care to ensure that it obtained Ms Greenway-Mansfield’s fully informed consent for any surgical procedure and informed her of the of the likely risks that could arise as a result.”

“The gynecologist prematurely proceeded with surgery before all behavioral and medical options had been exhausted. Moreover, she performed the wrong operation for the wrong condition and proceeded unnecessarily with surgery. It is particularly shocking that Ms Greenway-Mansfield signed a consent form which was subsequently amended to include risks of which she was never informed.

“No amount of money can fully compensate Ms. Greenway-Mansfield for the pain she has suffered and will continue to experience, and for the lifelong care she will require, all of which goes back to the fact that she did not need mesh in the first place .”

A spokesperson for University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust said: “We have sincerely apologized to Ms Greenway-Mansfield and recognize how her life was affected by this procedure in 2009. Incontinence or pelvic organ prolapse has been halted in England since 2019 and specialist centers have been established in 2022.”

“We hope that the settlement will enable Ms. Greenway-Mansfield to meet her ongoing care needs and provide her and her family with security in the future.”