Radwan Hamed

[Scarlet57]

Tottenham Hotspur liable for player brain damage

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-31492095

A High Court judge has ruled Tottenham Hotspur breached its duties to a 17-year-old player who suffered cardiac arrest in his first game for the club and was left brain damaged.

Radwan Hamed collapsed during the youth team game in Belgium in August 2006.

In a screening before he signed to the club, an ECG showed his heart to be "unequivocally abnormal" but he was not stopped from playing.

Damages, which could reach £7m, are to be decided next week.

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(Hadn't seen this posted already on front page).

 

[chinaman]

Who knows his exact physical condition? Is he wheel-chair bound for the rest of his life; and has he got impaired brain function? Really sad for a once supposedly fit young man.

 

[NEVILLEB]

Pretty disappointed we attempted to deny his family the damages they deserve and much needed to look after their brain damaged son.

Now they are pointing the finger at an 'ex-employee'.

 

[thekneaf]

It is pretty shabby, we should be bending over backwards to make sure he has everything he needs. It's OK for the kids that make it and earn a packet, but the club need to look after the rest too, not treat them like cattle. This is the very thinest end of the wedge. If a club employee messed up, then we are responsible. Just as my company would be if I made an error in my job.

 

[ardiles&villa]

Really sad, hope the family can get some sort of justice for the lad..

 

[Wellspurs]

It wont be the club but their insurers that are in court and they will be the ones settling the claim.

 

[Khilari]

Horrible story with no happy ending. The damages will never compensate what has been lost, but at the very least may allow this young man to lead an easier life.

I'm not sure, as a club they necessarily set out to deny him damages, however were clearly advised by their lawyers that they may not be solely responsible, with a doctor acting on their behalf. It would have been very unusual however for them to win unless they had followed advice given to them strictly, which it was claimed they didn't.

On a slight side note, this sort of thing can potentially happen to anyone, though clearly athletes pushing themselves put their hearts under some strain - and it is certainly worthwhile having an ECG performed (or at least seeing your GP) if any close relative (e.g. 1st degree cousin) has suddenly dropped dead 'without explanation'.

 

[Khilari]

Who knows his exact physical condition? Is he wheel-chair bound for the rest of his life; and has he got impaired brain function? Really sad for a once supposedly fit young man.

It's not clear but the report uses the line "He has been left unable to live independently", which very much implies he suffered significant brain injury.

 

[Always Offside]

It wont be the club but their insurers that are in court and they will be the ones settling the claim.

Don't let the truth get in the way of a good story !! SPURS NEGLIGENT !! THFC LEAVE FORMER PLAYER OUT IN THE COLD !! etc etc

Hope he get's all the help he & his family need.

 

[ERO]

Pretty disappointed we attempted to deny his family the damages they deserve and much needed to look after their brain damaged son.

Now they are pointing the finger at an 'ex-employee'.

If this was Beercelona sunday league team, think the trial would have ended in the same way?

It wouldn't be the same, but tragic accidents like this happens from time to time at all levels. Had it not happened playing for Tottenham, but at a lower level, he might very well have been dead now.

Having that view on Tottenham/the insurers is not very fair on them in my opinon. I don't know the ins and outs of the case, but from what I've seen it does not seem like a clear cut case with gross negligence, and having it tried by an impartial court seems a fair solution.

 

[DaSpurs]

Pretty disappointed we attempted to deny his family the damages they deserve and much needed to look after their brain damaged son.

Now they are pointing the finger at an 'ex-employee'.

It is pretty shabby, we should be bending over backwards to make sure he has everything he needs. It's OK for the kids that make it and earn a packet, but the club need to look after the rest too, not treat them like cattle. This is the very thinest end of the wedge. If a club employee messed up, then we are responsible. Just as my company would be if I made an error in my job.

I gathered the impression that the club did not attempt to duck the charges specifically but rather tried to place the blame on the physician consultant who ran the tests. All morality aside, when 7m is on the line that's perfectly reasonable IMO, and this is coming from a med student who will one day being paying out of his eyeballs for malpractice insurance.

Had the club been allotted the blame and tried making appeals or delays, then yes I think the accusations would be fair, but as it seems the court has ruled the club the culprit and as of yet we haven't seen anything about appeals or further court hearings, I don't think the club deserves any negative reactions or accusations as of this moment.

 

[TheHoddleWaddle]

I gathered the impression that the club did not attempt to suck the charges specifically but rather try to place the blame on the physician consultant who ran the tests. All morality aside, when 7m is on the line that's perfectly reasonable IMO, and this is coming from a med student who will one day being paying out of his eyeballs for malpractice insurance.

Has the club been allotted the blame and tried making appeals or delays, then yes I think the accusations would be fair, but as it seems the court has ruled the club the culprit and as of yet we haven't seen anything about appeals or further court hearings, I don't think the club deserves any negative reactions or accusations as of this moment.

Sadly, sensationalist media will use it to their advantage to sell papers, THFC liable etc etc.

Here's wishing the lad and his family well for the future. I don't know the extent of the poor boys damage, but I imagine there's no amount of money truly compensates it. Can only hope it helps.

 

[ultimateloner]

I gathered the impression that the club did not attempt to suck the charges specifically but rather try to place the blame on the physician consultant who ran the tests. All morality aside, when 7m is on the line that's perfectly reasonable IMO, and this is coming from a med student who will one day being paying out of his eyeballs for malpractice insurance.

Has the club been allotted the blame and tried making appeals or delays, then yes I think the accusations would be fair, but as it seems the court has ruled the club the culprit and as of yet we haven't seen anything about appeals or further court hearings, I don't think the club deserves any negative reactions or accusations as of this moment.

Fair point but most fans/individuals feel for the person rather than the club in this instance. This happened in Aug 2006: so the family has been shouldering the responsibility alone for 8 years +. That is a heavy burden to bear even for the wealthy; and given our club finances the least you'd expect is some help during that period. Doesnt seem like it though from the article.

 

[DaSpurs]

Fair point but most fans/individuals feel for the person rather than the club in this instance. This happened in Aug 2006: so the family has been shouldering the responsibility alone for 8 years +. That is a heavy burden to bear even for the wealthy; and given our club finances the least you'd expect is some help during that period. Doesnt seem like it though from the article.

Oh of course, morality will always side with the unfortunate individual rather than a wealthy corporation, as it should. But we don't know anything about the situation of me Hamed, including his health coverage/insurance. He may have even been covered a fair amount these years, but now they've had a lawyer come in and inform them they could be suing for professional wages beyond health care coverage. So we don't know all the facts here, so I don't think anyone should be rushing to the assumption of the big bad unconcerned corporation taking advantage of the working man.

The problem was that they ignored the abnormal ECG. For that they should be criticized, but with anything sense then we simply do not know all the facts.

 

[jambreck]

Pretty disappointed we attempted to deny his family the damages they deserve and much needed to look after their brain damaged son.

Now they are pointing the finger at an 'ex-employee'.

Do you actually know anything about the case or what Spurs have or haven't done?

The club claim to have offered every help to Hamed and his family over the past ten years. I can't imagine that they would make such an easily deniable claim were it not true. Nevertheless, Hamed and his family needed and deserved significant compensation. Spurs would quite likely have agreed and sympathised but their insurers would have insisted that they don't admit full responsibility. So they would have had no choice but to go through the due legal process.

As employers, Spurs were ultimately responsible, of course. But only vicariously so. Clearly, it was the two club doctors, along with the third party doctor, who specifically failed in their duty of care to Hamed. So the finger has rightly been pointed at them. They were the experts who failed to do their jobs.

 

[jambreck]

Fair point but most fans/individuals feel for the person rather than the club in this instance. This happened in Aug 2006: so the family has been shouldering the responsibility alone for 8 years +. That is a heavy burden to bear even for the wealthy; and given our club finances the least you'd expect is some help during that period. Doesnt seem like it though from the article.

The club claim to have been very supportive of the family over the past ten years.

If that wasn't true, we know enough about the media in this country to be quite sure that Spurs would have attracted a torrent of bad publicity.

So I think it highly unlikely that the family has been "shouldering the responsibility alone".

 

[DaSpurs]

Do you actually know anything about the case or what Spurs have or haven't done?

The club claim to have offered every help to Hamed and his family over the past ten years. I can't imagine that they would make such an easily deniable claim were it not true. Nevertheless, Hamed and his family needed and deserved significant compensation. Spurs would quite likely have agreed and sympathised but their insurers would have insisted that they don't admit full responsibility. So they would have had no choice but to go through the due legal process.

As employers, Spurs were ultimately responsible, of course. But only vicariously so. Clearly, it was the two club doctors, along with the third party doctor, who specifically failed in their duty of care to Hamed. So the finger has rightly been pointed at them. They were the experts who failed to do their jobs.

I agree entirely with the main point you're making here as it seems even our own fellow supporters are falling for the "big industry is the villain" trick via the media, but the club is at fault for being handed an abnormal ECG and playing him anyway. An abnormal ECG should ALWAYS arise suspicion of this condition and subsequent testing, especially since it is so common (2 in 1000 athletes have it according to a study done in 1995) and especially because the risks are so clearly devastating.

So the court has made the correct ruling IMO to point the finger at the club, but I'm absolutely with you that people should not be lambasting the club for "abandoning" the player as the media is borderline suggesting.

 

[jambreck]

It is pretty shabby, we should be bending over backwards to make sure he has everything he needs. It's OK for the kids that make it and earn a packet, but the club need to look after the rest too, not treat them like cattle. This is the very thinest end of the wedge. If a club employee messed up, then we are responsible. Just as my company would be if I made an error in my job.

Again........before flinging accusations around, do you actually know anything about the case or about what Spurs have done to support Hamed and his family over the past ten years or so?

The reason why every company has employers liability insurance is precisely for cases such as this. And if a claim is made, the insurance company will always try to do whatever it can to minimise its costs. Spurs will have been passengers during the legal process. The insurance company will have been calling the shots. It's simply what has to happen before insurance companies will pay up.

In the meanwhile, Spurs have been supporting Hamed and his family.

 

[jambreck]

I agree entirely with the main point you're making here as it seems even our own fellow supporters are falling for the "big industry is the villain" trick via the media, but the club is at fault for being handed an abnormal ECG and playing him anyway. An abnormal ECG should ALWAYS arise suspicion of this condition and subsequent testing, especially since it is so common (2 in 1000 athletes have it according to a study done in 1995) and especially because the risks are so clearly devastating.

So the court has made the correct ruling IMO to point the finger at the club, but I'm absolutely with you that people should not be lambasting the club for "abandoning" the player as the media is borderline suggesting.

Of course the club is ultimately responsible as the employer of two professionals who failed to do their jobs properly.

But the point is that it was those two club doctors, specifically, who ignored the warning in the ECG. They were the experts. They're the ones who would have wrongly advised the coaches (who have no medical expertise) that Hamed was fit to play.

So it's only right that the finger of blame was also pointed at the doctors concerned.

 

[NEVILLEB]

Do you actually know anything about the case or what Spurs have or haven't done?

The club claim to have offered every help to Hamed and his family over the past ten years. I can't imagine that they would make such an easily deniable claim were it not true. Nevertheless, Hamed and his family needed and deserved significant compensation. Spurs would quite likely have agreed and sympathised but their insurers would have insisted that they don't admit full responsibility. So they would have had no choice but to go through the due legal process.

As employers, Spurs were ultimately responsible, of course. But only vicariously so. Clearly, it was the two club doctors, along with the third party doctor, who specifically failed in their duty of care to Hamed. So the finger has rightly been pointed at them. They were the experts who failed to do their jobs.

You seem to think you know better than the judge!

"Mr Justice Hickinbottom ruled the club was 70% liable and Dr Peter Mills, the Football Association's regional cardiologist for South East England, was 30% liable."

"A statement from Hamed's legal representative, Diane Rostron, medical negligence partner at Linder Myers Solicitors, read: “My client suffered catastrophic brain damage as a result of a cardiac arrest which today’s judgement confirmed was entirely avoidable."

“The FA has a screening programme which requires that clubs ensure their young players undergo tests for cardiac conditions such as the silent, and well-documented, life threatening heart condition hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).

“Both the doctors employed and instructed by Spurs failed in their duty of care to Radwan with devastating results.

Since he did not get proper protection for his heart condition from people employed by the club then I can see why it would be held to account.

Better to have apologised and paid up without having their family go through a lengthy legal process to get what they need to care for their brain damaged son.