Anaesthesia Awareness Claims Solicitors

There are numerous reasons why a patient might regain awareness during surgery.

If a patient is living with a severe injury or illness, a lower dose of anaesthesia may be used, which could increase the likelihood they wake up partway through their medical care. Alternatively, when completing a caesarean section, an anaesthetist may limit the amount they administer to support both mother and baby.

Similarly, if a person is more resistant to anaesthesia, it might not have the same effect on them as it would on another person. Research has shown that:

• Women are more resistant to general anaesthetic than men 
• Obese people will resist anaesthetic more frequently 
• Those taking certain medications before surgery may have developed greater resistance to general anaesthetics

An anaesthetist or surgeon should conduct a thorough interview with a patient before surgery to establish any factors that could increase the chances a patient will wake up during surgery. If this step is missed, it could mean incorrect levels of anaesthetic are administered, raising the risk of awareness mid-operation.

Intraoperative awareness may also occur because:

• The delivery of anaesthetic was interrupted 
• Emergency drugs were used at the time 
• A patient’s airway was improperly managed

To reduce the risk of anaesthesia awareness, the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist was created to outline the steps specialists should take. If a medical professional failed to follow this guidance, this could be a sign that negligence was to blame for you or your loved one’s traumatic experience. 

If you believe negligent care during surgery was responsible for your anaesthesia awareness, you should instruct an experienced medical negligence firm to investigate your case. They will look to establish three key factors:

• There was a breach of your healthcare provider’s duty of care 
• You suffered pain, injury, financial loss or psychological damage 
• Your suffering was directly caused by your healthcare provider’s breach of duty

Proving these elements is essential for any successful medical negligence claim. All cases are judged on the Balance of Probabilities – you must prove that it is more likely that your injuries were caused by negligent treatment than not.

As part of this process, our expert medical negligence solicitors will gather and assess all available evidence connected to your claim, including medical records and witness statements. This will help us determine whether a healthcare professional breached their duty of care, and quantify the value of compensation.

To learn more about how we pursue and prove clinical negligence claims, read our dedicated claims process page.

Yes. If you or a member of your family experienced negligent medical treatment, and this resulted in intraoperative awareness, it is possible to claim compensation for emotional distress.

Seeing or feeling your own operation can cause a great deal of fear, panic and stress. If you’re unable to move your body or get anyone’s attention when waking up, this can further add to the distress involved.

In these unfortunate incidents, those affected may require counselling and psychological therapy. With nightmares, panic attacks and post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD) common following anaesthesia awareness, the compensation recovered from a successful claim can be crucial in supporting an individual’s recovery.

Every medical negligence case is unique. That means the value of your or your family member’s settlement will depend on the individual circumstances of their claim.

As specialist solicitors with decades of experience, we take the time to fully recognise how your experience has affected you or your loved one’s life, and ensure the compensation amount issued reflects these specific details.

You have three years from the date you or your loved one experienced their incident to start an anaesthetic awareness claim. However, there are exceptions to this rule:

• If a claimant is under 18, they have until their 21st birthday to start their claim 
• If a claimant is considered mentally incapacitated, there is no time limit to start their claim 
• If a claimant sadly passes away before the claim is resolved, the three-year time limit restarts from the date of their passing

If your injury occurred over three years ago, we still encourage you to contact our solicitors. Each claim is at the court’s discretion, and we can advise if your claim is likely to be allowed.

Furthermore, we recommend contacting us as early as possible. This ensures that evidence stays fresh and statements are more certain, reinforcing the strength of your case.