Court Resumes Hearing Suit Against K'Bu Hospital

William Yaw Owusu

Wednesday, 25 October 2006
AN Accra Fast Track High Court has resumed hearing the case in which a 14-year old boy has sued the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital for negligence.

When the case resumed yesterday, after the two-month legal vacation, there was a series of motions and counter motions between Frank Darko (Plaintiff) and the hospital (defendants).

The suit, filed on behalf of the plaintiff by his mother, Gladys Darko, cites the governing board of the hospital as well as Doctors Kennedy Addo, Korpisah and Agbeko, all of the hospital, for a "wrongful operation" conducted on Frank on September 13, last year.

Master Darko is asking for ¢800 million in damages.

The doctors, according to the suit, operated on the boy’s left knee instead of the right, after he had been diagnosed with a torn patella ligament.

The writ further claimed that the boy’s father suffered a cardiac arrest and died as a result of the doctors negligence.

When Mr. Thomas Hughes, Counsel for Darko took the floor, he again moved "a motion on notice for discovery of documents", an application he had filed on June 28 and which was opposed by defence counsel. This time round it was granted by the court.

With this development, when the case resumes on November 6, the plaintiff will now be able to tender in evidence a list of documents intended for the purpose.

Mr. Emmanuel Ohene, counsel for the defendants, also moved two motions-an amendment to the paragraph 31 of their statement of case, and a motion for discovery of document (physiotherapy treatment) card of the plaintiff issued on November 18 last year, which is the custody of the plaintiff.

The trial judge Mr. Justice E.K. Ayebi granted the hospital application, saying that although counsel did not support the application, with an affidavit, he had used his discretion in granting it.