The daughter of a man who killed himself after a loophole prevented insurance paying out for botched dental surgery that left him in agony for years yesterday described the system as ‘not fit for purpose’.
Clive Worthington suffered nerve damage in 2008 after a procedure to replace his dentures with eight implants.
His weight plummeted as he was unable to eat properly and was plagued by migraines and insomnia.
In 2019, he was awarded £117,378 in compensation and costs – one of the UK’s largest awards for dental negligence – which he was to use for remedial work not available on the NHS.
But the court-approved payment was refused by the dentist’s insurer under an obscure loophole known as ‘discretionary damages’.
Gina Tilly, the daughter of Clive Worthington (pictured together) who killed herself after a loophole prevented an insurance payout for botched dental surgery that left her in agony for years, yesterday described the system as ‘not fit for purpose’ ‘.
Clive (pictured with Gina) suffered nerve damage in 2008 after a procedure to replace dentures with eight implants
In 2019, he was awarded £117,378 in compensation and costs – one of the UK’s largest awards for dental negligence – which he will use for remedial work that was not available on the NHS (Stock image used )
He took his own life aged 81 in September last year, six years after his wife, Catherine, died.
An inquest last week found that the ‘long-term consequences’ of the procedure had ‘significantly’ affected his mental health.
His daughter Gina Tilly, 44, told MailOnline: ‘It (discretionary compensation) is just absolutely outdated and not fit for purpose.
“My biggest question is not whether it should be allowed or not. That is why it has not been stopped now when the government and the General Dental Council are well aware of the risks and have been for some time.’
Grandfather Mr Worthington, a retired wood machinist from Harlow, Essex, traveled to Budapest in Hungary for dental implants because of the lower costs there for work not available on the NHS.
Several follow-up surgeries were performed over the next seven years to try to correct the problems, but he remained in constant pain.
He tried over-the-counter medications and morphine-based pain relievers, but nothing eased his suffering.
Just before he took his own life, he even had botox injections in his throat – recommended by doctors – in an attempt to help him swallow food.
An inquest last week concluded Worthington’s death was a suicide.
Senior Coroner for Essex Lincoln Brookes told the hearing that the ‘long-term consequences’ of the botched operation ‘significantly affected his mental health and ability to cope with everyday life’.
Miss Tilly added: “It affected every aspect of his life – his sleep, what he ate. And the social element of his life. He loved going out with friends and family, but in the end it stopped him from doing the things he loved.’
Clive killed himself aged 81 in September last year, six years after his wife Catherine died
An inquest last week found that the ‘long-term consequences’ of the procedure had ‘significantly’ affected Clive’s mental health (pictured left).
In 2017, the General Dental Council revealed that Dr. Eszter Gambos, who was employed by UK business Perfect Profiles, was found guilty.
Payment was awarded by Chelmsford District Court, but the Dental Defense Union, which provided insurance cover for Dr Gombos, refused to pay.
Some dentists have comprehensive insurance provided by a regulated insurer with binding terms which means patients can be confident they will receive compensation if their treatment causes them avoidable harm.
But Dr Gombos did not have full insurance and was only covered by her membership of the Dental Defense Union, a mutual dental society.
Such not-for-profit organizations, which are owned by their members, provide professional indemnity on a discretionary basis against the risk of dental malpractice or professional misconduct proceedings.
This means that even if a judge orders a payment, they can refuse – and not explain why.
Miss Tilly described the situation as ‘madness’, adding: ‘I have completely lost faith in the system.’
She said she would ‘keep asking questions’ to bring about change as soon as possible because she doesn’t want ‘my father to have died in vain’.
Chris Dean, a registered dentist and managing director of the Dental Law Partnership who specializes in medical negligence claims, has described how the ‘inadequacy’ of discretionary compensation comes up ‘time and again’.
He said: “When these 130-year-old unregulated mutual societies decide to exercise their discretion not to pay, as they have done 29 times for our clients in the past seven years, our clients have no way of recovering compensation. to which they are entitled.’
An inquest last week concluded that the death of Mr Worthington (pictured left) was a suicide
Perfect Profiles’ website says the business, based in Houghton Regis, Bedfordshire, ceased trading last year.
A woman who answered the phone said no one was available to comment.
The DDU said it was unable to comment on individual cases, but added: “It is very rare that we are unable to provide support to our members.”
However, earlier this year its website stated that in 2019 it “successfully defended 65 percent of claims without making claims for patient compensation.”
The General Dental Council said: ‘Patients should be able to seek compensation in the rare event that something goes wrong with their dental care and it is deeply disappointing that weaknesses in current legislation caused the system to fail in this case.
“We encourage the Department of Health and Social Care to speed up their work to review and update the existing provisions, which we as a regulator can then implement.”
The DHSC said: “We are working with the sector to improve access to compensation for clinical negligence and will ensure that any changes are in the best interests of patients.”
An update on the review will be released later this year, he added.
For confidential support call Samaritans on 116123 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details
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