TRAINER SUES NHS FOR £1.5m OVER LEG
It’s improvement, hero told
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AN elephant balances on its hind legs to reach the tastiest leaves. Photographer Bobby-Jo Vial captured the majestic scene in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe.
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She said: “The behaviour happens when food is scarce. At this time of year food is limited in dry areas such as Mana Pools, so elephants have to get inventive when trying to find food.” A FITNESS instructor who is suing the NHS for £1.5million after losing his leg has been told he is “better off without it”.
Captain Stuart Croxford claimed he lost his limb due to “negligent failures” by medics following a yachting accident.
But NHS lawyers claim the 34-year-old is better off now with only one leg.
The former Army captain was left in constant pain from severe foot and ankle injuries suffered in a bomb attack while serving in Afghanistan in 2012.
But he had battled back and learned to walk again before an accident in a charity yacht race off the Isle of Wight caused injuries which resulted in the amputation of his right leg.
Pain
Stuart, of Fulham, west London, claimed that his limb could have been saved if treatment had not been delayed while he was in hospital.
But despite admitting there was a “negligent delay”, lawyers for the Isle of Wight NHS Trust claim the former officer is actually better off without his leg.
They say amputation was inevitable eventually due to the effects of his war injury.
NHS barrister Aidan O’Brien said: “His current levels of comfort and function appear significantly improved.”
But Stuart’s barrister Dr Peter Ellis said in a writ: “He suffers from pain and swelling in the stump if he walks too far.”
The claim is due to go before a judge at Central London County Court on a date to be fixed.