A court in Uralsk partially upheld the claim of the deceased patient's son and ordered the hospital to pay 4 million tenge in compensation for moral damages. The court concluded that the untimely provision of medical care led to the loss of a real opportunity to prevent death.
WHAT THE COURT ESTABLISHED
According to the Supreme Court, a 58-year-old resident of Uralsk repeatedly sought medical help, but medical workers each time refused to carry out the necessary examinations, citing his state of alcohol intoxication.
However, no test for alcohol content in the patient's body was conducted. After contacting the call centre of the Healthcare Department, the man was hospitalised in a therapeutic ward, where he was diagnosed with an ischaemic stroke. Despite the initiation of treatment, the patient died the very next day.
HOW THE CASE WAS HEARD
After the man's death, his son filed a complaint with the police, but the pre-trial investigation was terminated due to the absence of a criminal offence.
At the same time, an inspection carried out by the Department of the Committee for Medical and Pharmaceutical Control of the Ministry of Health revealed violations in the provision of medical care to the patient. Believing that the inaction of medical workers led to his father's death, the son filed a lawsuit seeking compensation for moral damages from the hospital and the attending physician on a joint and several basis.
POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES AND THE COURT'S DECISION
The hospital's representative did not admit the claim. The prosecutor gave an opinion in favour of partial satisfaction of the claim.
Having examined the evidence presented, the Court No. 2 of the City of Uralsk concluded that the untimely provision of medical care deprived the patient of a real opportunity to avoid death. The court also noted that the father's death caused the plaintiff deep moral suffering, and the identified violations on the part of medical workers gave rise to feelings of injustice, despair, anger, and emotional distress.
As a result, the court partially upheld the claim and ordered the hospital to pay the plaintiff 4 million tenge in compensation for moral damages. The court's decision has entered into legal force.
