The Story
The claimant was diagnosed with a cervical disc hernia and underwent a microscopic discectomy and disc prosthesis placement surgery at a public training hospital in İzmir. Following the surgery, the patient developed quadriparesis (reduced motor and sensory functions in the arms, torso, legs, and pelvic organs).
The claimant sued the administration, alleging that the quadriparesis and a subsequent need for additional surgeries resulted from medical malpractice and lack of care. Initially, relying on a Forensic Medicine Institute report that called the complication a known risk, the lower administrative courts dismissed the claim, noting no service fault.
Why the Council of State Reversed the Case
The Council of State (Danıştay) found the expert report insufficient because it failed to explicitly explain the specific sequence of events—such as why the disc prosthesis was displaced backwards, whether a cervical spinal cord injury actually occurred during the procedure, and if proper post-operative treatments like drains were needed and utilized.
More critically, the court examined the informed consent forms signed prior to the surgery. While the forms detailed general risks like nerve damage associated with drawing blood or inserting IVs, they completely failed to warn the patient about the severe risk of postoperative quadriparesis related to the neck surgery itself. Because the patient was not adequately informed of this specific and critical risk, the administration's informed consent obligation was breached. As a result, the court ruled that the claimant is entitled to moral damages for the anxiety and distress caused by the defective provision of healthcare services.