A LOWER Gornal man who suffered a heart attack on the operating table after the anaesthetist left the room has received a five-figure payout.

Adam Bennett was undergoing routine urological surgery under general anaesthetic at Russells Hall Hospital in April 2015.

He was left unattended by the anaesthetist for two minutes - but during that time, his heart rate became irregular and he went into cardiac arrest.

The 48-year-old said: “After the incident I was told what had happened and how the anaesthetist was not present in the theatre.

"I honestly could not believe it – you put a huge amount of faith in the doctors treating you, so I was completely shocked to hear what had happened.

“If everything had gone to plan I should have been out of hospital that day, but instead I needed days in hospital to recover and then also another procedure booked in for July.

"Because of what I’d been through, I got very worried ahead of that operation and while all went well it was a very stressful time."

Mr Bennett instructed specialist medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell, who argued that if the anaesthetist had been present at the time of the cardiac arrest, drugs could have been administered, which would have prevented the heart attack and ensured the surgery proceeded as planned.

He has since received a five-figure settlement from Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust.

“While I am happy to have got a settlement regarding what happened, this was always about more than money for me," Mr Bennett said.

"Safety has to always come first and the issues I suffered cannot be allowed to happen again. Lessons have to be learned.”

Diane Wake, chief executive at the Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, said: "We accept that the temporary absence of the anaesthetist during Adam Bennett’s procedure was inexcusable and that if he had been present the situation would have been managed differently.

"During our investigation into the incident, the anaesthetist was placed on restricted practice and referred to the General Medical Council.

"We would like to apologise to Mr Bennett for any distress caused."