Dr Rawle R. Hannibal loses court appeal against BVIHSA
Dr Hannibal, who unsuccessfully contested for an At Large Representative seat as an Independent candidate at the 2015 General Elections, lost at the High Court three years ago and decided to appeal the matter, claiming that when he suffered a stroke in 2012, it was as a result of negligence by medical staff at the Dr D. Orlando Smith Hospital (formerly Peebles Hospital) located in Road Town, Tortola.
When the matter arose before the Justices of Appeal; Hons Davidson Kelvin Baptiste, Gertel Thom and Paul Webster, the judgement by Justice Vicki Ann Ellis was upheld.
Judgement was delivered on December 12, 2019.
The ground for the appeal was whether the judge applied correct law on causation, whether the judge erred in finding that the appellant failed to prove causation, whether the judge erred in resolution of conflicting expert evidence, whether the judge wrongly concluded on effect of failure to disclose relevantly and whether the judge erred in awarding costs to the successful party on the claim.
A stroke was imminent- Court ruling
“Dr Hannibal’s main claim was that had the Hospital’s employees taken reasonable care in administering urgent and active treatment with respect to the Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), he probably would not have suffered a stroke within 24 hours of his admission. The BVIHSA denied the alleged negligence and contended that even if there had been a breach of duty, Dr Hannibal’s medical history (hypertensive and diabetic) was such that the breach would not have made any difference to his condition and that he would still have suffered the stroke,” the judgement on the ECSC website stated.
“At trial, Dr Hannibal and the Health Authority relied on the expert evidence of two medical practitioners to prove and resist the claim that the Hospitals’ treatment was the cause of his stroke. Both experts were rigorously cross-examined at trial.”
The judgement stated that Dr Hannibal presented himself to the hospital for treatment at around 3:30 am after feeling weak on the left side of his body and an unusual sensation in his head.
At 4:15 am he was diagnosed as suffering from a Transient Ischemic Attack (“TIA”) and at 5:30 pm after examination by the internist specialist he was diagnosed with a probable TIA secondary to uncontrolled hypertension. The following day it was determined that he had suffered a stroke and was immediately transported by air ambulance to the Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Florida.
Appeal dismissed
Justice of Appeal Hon Davidson Kelvin Baptiste concluded that “I would dismiss the appeal and affirm the costs order that Dr Hannibal pay prescribed costs to the BVI Health Services Authority. I would order that Dr Hannibal pay two-thirds of those costs on appeal.”
Mr Keith Scotland represented Dr Hannibal while Mr Terrance B. Neale was the attorney for the BVIHSA.
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13 Responses to “Dr Rawle R. Hannibal loses court appeal against BVIHSA”
Take it to the UK courts...Caribbean justice is too ..............
Please. The doctor or hospital cannot prevent anyone from having a stroke when upon admission he is already suffering from the symptoms. You wait to late for intervention buddy. Sad, because you actually worked at the hospital and should not have allowed your health to deteriorate to that degree.