Celebrity Cases of Medical Negligence

Medical negligence can often seem like something that doesn’t occur very often – or at least, you won’t know anyone who’s suffered from negligence. However, it’s more common than you think. In 2019, there were just under 12,000 medical negligence claims alone in the UK. And the rich and famous aren’t immune either. Below we list the celebrities who have suffered from medical negligence.

Julie Andrews

Julie Andrews was famous for a stunning singing voice and performed in The Sound of Music alongside several Broadway shows. However, in 1997 she suffered from negligence during surgery on her vocal cords, leaving her unable to sing professionally ever again.

Joan Rivers

Joan Rivers was an extremely successful American comedian. During a routine endoscopy in 2014 Rivers died from a heart attack. Her daughter, Melissa, subsequently launched a malpractice case that accused the clinic of performing a laryngoscopy instead. Alongside this, a federal investigation found that the clinic failed to keep accurate medical records for Rivers.

Hulk Hogan

Hulk Hogan, the former American wrestler, has also suffered from medical negligence. In his case, he had back surgery to try and alleviate consistent pain he was suffering. However, the surgery only worsened his back pain and Hogan was unable to work for two years as a result.

Kylie Minogue

In Kylie’s case, the famous pop singer suffered from a misdiagnosis. Minogue was initially tested for signs of breast cancer and was given all clear, before later finding out that she did indeed have breast cancer. Fortunately, Minogue underwent treatment and recovered, but during concerts Minogue has urged fans to get checked if they’re still unsure about a diagnosis.

Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods suffered from malpractice when his personal information was misused following a car accident in 2009. A former nurse from the hospital that admitted Woods, gained access to his medical records without permission.

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson’s death featured one of the most famous medical malpractice incidents in modern times. Jackson died following a lethal overdose of prescription drugs administered by his doctor. Following a lengthy court case, the physician was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter and was sentenced to a maximum of four years in jail.

Ultimately, anyone can suffer from medical negligence. If you think you might be entitled to compensation, you should avoid delaying and seek professional advice on how to proceed.

Dana Carvery

Back in 1997 Wayne’s world actor and comedian Dana Carvery received heart surgery, a common coronary artery bypass operation that is performed over 500,000 times a year. However, it wasn’t until two months later that Carvery didn’t feel well and was unable to work. He underwent several surgeries to discover what the issue might be. It wasn’t until much later, by a different doctor, that Carvery discovered that the surgeon bypassed the wrong artery. Leaving Carvery unable to work for several years. Carvery brought a medical negligence case which resulted in a whooping 7.5-million-dollar award for everything that he lost over the years.

Photo by Julia Zyablova on Unsplash

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