He got justice after 22 years of family life who, due to a medical error in the maternity ward and the health institute, is raising her child with a mental and physical disability.

His unprecedented court decision Multi-member Court of First Instance of Thessaloniki provides for the compensation of 520,000 euros to the parents and paves the way for countless similar cases that… stagnate awaiting justice.

A few days after the court’s decision, the mother of the – 22-year-old girl today – and the family’s lawyer Nikos Dialynas talk to Thesstoday.gr about the multi-year and delay-filled legal battle in which they have indulged, until the vindication for the mistake that deprived the child of a life without disabilities.

The timeline of the case

The medical error occurred in 2001, when the child was born in a clinic in Thessaloniki and no diagnosis of phenylketonuria was made from which he suffered. Although he underwent the mandatory tests performed on all newborns to detect metabolic diseases by drawing blood from the heel, the sample was delayed from being sent from the clinic to the health institute for testing. Instead of being sent within 48 hours, as required by law, it was sent after a full 22 days, with the result that it has been tampered with and the result shows that the child is not suffering from any disease. In fact, phenylketonuria is a disease that goes away on its own, without any treatment, but with a milk-free diet for three weeks. In this case, due to the… non-diagnosis, the baby was fed normally with milk and very quickly became disabled physically and mentally.

“A human life was destroyed by a medical error and we waited 17 years for justice”

In a heartfelt testimony about the obstacle-filled life of the child and the family who have been in and out of courtrooms since 2012, the mother reports to Thesstoday.gr “we are talking about a human life that was demonstrably destroyed by medical error. Why shouldn’t it be solved in 2-3 years and be solved in 17, while we are in Europe?”, expressing at the same time her desire, that their own end, be the first of many, that will find justice.

“My child could have been normal if he just didn’t drink milk”

As the mother describes, the signs started when her daughter was just a few months old, while they gradually developed into a physical disability as well as a severe mental retardation, with the result that today she is not self-sufficient. “My child has severe autism, an IQ below 30, and self-injurious and aggressive behavior. She has no way to express herself, she has no speech, yet when you are familiar with her and look at her, you understand what she needs, she is communicative but she needs help 24 hours a day. At 16 she lost her sight and regained it after much suffering. There are many like us, our case is extreme because the child could be normal if the diagnosis was made and he did not drink milk. It was also unfortunate because he got sick and was not diagnosed,” he notes.

Apart from the health condition of the girl, the chronic delays in the delivery of Justice constituted a huge “boulder” for the family. “It’s been too many years and in all this time we’ve changed houses, jobs and still waited to be vindicated. The court’s decision is a great relief for us, and after many years of mental, physical and financial suffering, we just want it to end,” emphasizes the mother.

Dissolve: “Decision that unties the judges’ hands”

Analyzing the judicial path of the case, the lawyer of the family, Nikos Dialynas, explains to Thesstoday.gr that although they filed two lawsuits, -one in 2012 and one in 2015-, the case was moving… he noted, as the doctors appointed by the court as experts , were disowned one after the other for four whole years. “Multiple waivers delay the process and require additional time and money, inconveniencing the parties,” he explains.

With the case dragging on due to multiple recantations, the criminologist called for the court to get to the bottom of the case, with the decision to be issued in March 2024, awarding the family €520,000 in monetary compensation from the clinic and health institute.

As he explains, the court’s unprecedented decision paves the way for cases that remain “on ice” due to the multiple recantations of experts, causing distress to the parties. “There was no law to deal with the problem so I called on the court to get straight to the heart of the matter, ignoring the fact that there is no expert witness. This arrangement provides a solution to a perennial problem that troubles the parties and leads thousands of court cases to stagnate even for 10 years. For these cases, the new law of the Ministry of Justice did not foresee any solution, so, with this decision, the hands of the judges are now freed, for a quick and correct administration of justice that the European Union and the citizens themselves are looking for “, notes the lawyer.

Fear of the second pregnancy

Nine years after the birth of their first child, the family gave birth to their youngest daughter, who is now 13 years old. Having great fear of falling victim to another medical error, the mother while she was pregnant underwent a DNA test for metabolic diseases, which fortunately came out negative. “Fortunately the youngest was completely free. He shares the situation and feels bad. She has great emotional intelligence, she loves her sister and it is a support for us to have a functional child at home, it gives us strength”, he emphasizes.