KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 14 — The High Court here has awarded a total of RM335,000 in damages in a negligence suit filed by a former national hockey player on behalf of the estate of his late wife who passed away after suffering a brain stem stroke.

In the grounds of judgment released today, Judicial Commissioner Datuk Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin Shah Raja Mohzan made a decision after allowing Avtar Singh’s claim against a private hospital’s doctor who attended, examined, diagnosed and treated his wife, Salinder Kaur.

Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin has allowed special damages of RM234,624.09 and RM100,000 in general damages to the plaintiff (Avtar) with costs of RM40,000.

"I find that the amount of RM100,000 was justified given that the deceased was bedridden for almost 10 months before she passed away as a result of a brain stem stroke,” he said in the 33-page judgment.

Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin further said that the doctor had admitted responsibility for the plaintiff’s claim.

"It is evident from the re-amended statement of claim that the doctor had admitted to every aspect of the negligence claims that were made against him.

"When something occurs after the hospital has taken the necessary reasonable care as I have found in this case, the liability should rest solely with the doctor,” he added.

However, Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin dismissed the plaintiff’s claim against a private hospital at Kelana Jaya with costs of 30,000 after ruling that the hospital did not owe the plaintiff or the deceased a non-delegable duty of care.

Avtar, played in the 1976 and 1980 Olympics games and also participated in two World Cups in 1978 and 1981, as a member of the Malaysian national team.

As a result of the tragic incident that occurred to his wife (Salinder), Avtar was forced to put aside his personal interests, including as a coach, to devote himself full time to take care of his wife.

The statement of claim, filed in 2019, stated that Salinder was brought to the emergency department of the hospital on August 21, 2016, after experiencing severe pain and numbness in her left arm.

Following that, Salinder was admitted to the hospital.

It was alleged that the doctor practised outside the scope of his qualifications and further failed to diagnose the deceased properly because the hospital did not possess the proper medical equipment, which led to Salinder being transferred to another hospital.

She appeared to have suffered from a brain stem stroke and died almost 10 months later. — Bernama