Mr C complained about the care and treatment he received from Cardiff and Vale University Health Board. Specifically, the investigation considered whether the care and treatment provided to Mr C was reasonable and appropriate following his hernia surgery on 12 April 2022 and if an earlier intervention would have reduced the likelihood of Mr C requiring further surgery. It also considered whether Mr C was appropriately informed of the associated risks prior to his hernia surgery.
The investigation found that the care and treatment provided to Mr C was appropriate following his hernia surgery and that an earlier intervention would not have reduced the likelihood of him requiring further surgery. This aspect of Mr C’s complaint was not upheld.
The investigation did find that Mr C was not appropriately informed of the risks associated with his surgery. This failure amounted to maladministration on the part of the Health Board and caused an injustice to Mr C as he did not have a proper opportunity to weigh up the pros and cons of proceeding, and to that extent only, upheld this part of the complaint. The Ombudsman recommended the Health Board to apologise to Mr C and consider the use of procedure-specific patient information leaflets and pre-printed procedure-specific consent forms to provide consistent and legible evidence of discussion of relevant risks.