Dubai Court orders medical center to pay Dh1.5 million over serious misdiagnosis

Dubai: Dubai civil court has ordered a private medical center to pay Dh1.5 million in compensation to a patient after finding that a doctor committed a serious medical error by misdiagnosing her condition and prescribing unnecessarily high doses of corticosteroids, Emarat Al Youm reported.

The treatment caused severe health complications, including osteoporosis and stress fractures in her hip joint, according to a report issued by Dubai Health Authority’s Medical Liability Committee.

The woman filed a lawsuit demanding Dh3 million in damages plus 5 per cent annual interest, citing physical and emotional harm resulting from the wrongful diagnosis. 

She said she had visited the doctor for an evaluation of test results suggesting optic neuritis, but he incorrectly diagnosed her with myasthenia gravis and began treatment with daily doses of 50 mg of cortisone, later continuing the regimen for an extended period without medical justification.

Her health deteriorated, and another orthopedic specialist later discovered a stress fracture in her hip caused by excessive steroid use. She subsequently filed a complaint with the health authority.

The official investigation confirmed the doctor’s professional negligence, noting that he ignored test results that disproved his initial diagnosis and continued high-dose prescriptions without monitoring side effects or following the advice of neurology consultants. The committee concluded the doctor’s error was “100 per cent proven.”

During court proceedings, the medical center requested that the case be referred back to the committee, but the court rejected the motion, ruling the report final and binding. 

It also held the center liable as the supervising entity, citing Article 313 of the Civil Transactions Law, which establishes an employer’s responsibility for the actions of its employees.

The court concluded that the harm sustained by the patient both physical and psychological warranted substantial compensation. 

It ordered the medical center to pay Dh1.5 million plus 5 per cent annual interest from the date the ruling becomes final, along with legal fees and court costs.