Feltham v St Vincent's Hospital

In *Feltham v St Vincent's Hospital* [1993] NSWCA 96, the New South Wales Court of Appeal considered an appeal by the plaintiff, Feltham, against a decision of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The dispute concerned the plaintiff's claim for damages for personal injuries sustained as a result of alleged negligence on the part of the defendant, St Vincent's Hospital.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the trial judge had erred in finding that the hospital had not been negligent in its treatment of the plaintiff. Specifically, the court had to determine if the medical practitioners at the hospital had breached their duty of care to the plaintiff, and if so, whether that breach had caused the injuries for which damages were sought.

The Court of Appeal reviewed the evidence presented at trial, focusing on the standard of care expected of medical professionals in the circumstances. The court applied the principles established in *Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee* [1957] 1 WLR 582, which holds that a medical practitioner is not guilty of negligence if they have acted in accordance with a practice accepted as proper by a responsible body of medical men skilled in that particular art, even though a body of opinion takes a contrary view. The court found that the treatment provided by the hospital's staff met this standard, and therefore, no negligence had occurred.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal dismissed the plaintiff's appeal and affirmed the decision of the Supreme Court.