A practice in the Leicestershire area

4. Mr O complains about the Practice’s care and treatment and says:

• since 2017 it has missed the opportunity to diagnose TOS

• on 15 May 2023 it missed the opportunity to diagnose DVT.

5. Mr O says the TOS being undiagnosed for so long means he has had severe pain for many years. He explains the untreated TOS caused a DVT that was not diagnosed by the Practice in time to be dissolved. He says he continues to suffer pain in his arm and must have regular physiotherapy, which he pays for privately.

6. He has been advised not to overdo exercise, swim or lift weights. These are activities he used to enjoy and used to help with his mental health. He says this has stopped him from leading an active, healthy lifestyle and his mental health has suffered greatly.

7. Mr O would like a financial payment. He is not sure what amount he would like but would like to discuss his situation with a solicitor to be find out how much he could be entitled to.

8. Mr O had pain in his wrist for ten years. Since joining the practice in 2017 he had many appointments and was referred to rheumatology, physiotherapy and pain management clinics. He had several MRI scans and nerve conduction studies. He was told he had repetitive strain injury. Mr O says at no time did the Practice consider a vascular issue.

9. Mr O had swelling in his arm when exercising on 11 May 2023. He attended the Practice on 15 May and was told the problem was muscular and he should get private physiotherapy as the NHS waiting list was long. On 6 June his arm swelled after swimming. He returned to the Practice on 7 June and saw a different GP. The GP referred him to the vascular department because he thought Mr O’s symptoms were a sign of vein restriction.

10. In June the vascular department diagnosed TOS and DVT. The vascular surgeon advised that if the DVT had been found in the first two weeks it could have been dissolved. The vascular surgeon tried to remove the DVT with a mechanical thrombectomy (procedure to remove a blood clot) under local anaesthetic. Mr O says the surgery was unsuccessful because the catheter could not get through the blockage. He says the vascular surgeon said the vein had collapsed because the clot had been there for so long.

12. The Health Service Commissioners Act 1993 (the law) says we cannot investigate a complaint where a person has (or had) the option to take legal action, unless we consider this is (or was) unreasonable in the circumstances. We have discussed this with Mr O to understand his circumstances and the outcome he wants. We do not consider whether legal action would succeed, but whether it would be a reasonable option to look in to.

13. Clinical negligence is when a patient who had treatment becomes injured as a result of that treatment. Failure to carry out appropriate treatment could also amount to negligence.

14. Mr O says the Practice missed the opportunity to diagnose TOS and DVT. He says this caused severe pain for many years when it could have been treated.

15. Mr O wants a financial payment.

16. Mr O could take legal action given the claimed failing and the impact it had.

17. Mr O told us there are no barriers to stop him from exploring his legal options on a ‘no win no fee’ basis. Mr O says he would not be able to afford to take legal action otherwise.

18. We have advised Mr O if there are any outstanding concerns that cannot be achieved by making a legal claim, or if he finds he cannot make a legal claim, he can bring the complaint back to us. We have told Mr O about our time limit.

19. We are closing Mr O’s complaint as he has the opportunity to resolve it legally and it is reasonable for him to explore this.

1. We have carefully considered Mr O’s complaint about a GP practice in the Leicestershire area (the Practice).

2. We are very sorry to hear about how Mr O has been affected by thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS is where nerves or blood vessels near the top of the ribs get squashed) and deep vein thrombosis (DVT is a blood clot in a vein). We appreciate this is a difficult time for him.

3. We think Mr O could take legal action on the matter he has brought to us.