A young crewmember was working as a waitress aboard a cruise ship in one of the vessel’s restaurants when an accident led to devastating injuries.
The restaurant had a revolving door leading to the kitchen. Crewmembers rushing to perform their jobs would sometimes push the revolving door to move through it more quickly than the door turned on its own.
On this occasion, a fellow crewmember pushed the door without looking through the viewing window and failed to see that our client was walking in the opposite direction. The door struck our client’s foot, causing her to fall forward, hit her head against the door, and then fall to the floor.
Her Condition Worsens Aboard the Ship
Our client’s back pain increased over the following days until she was desperately in need of medical care from a specialist ashore. The cruise line was required to make provisions for prompt and adequate medical treatment and eventually sent her to a shoreside physician.
The physician determined that she needed immediate spinal surgery.
Rather than coordinating the surgery at a properly equipped hospital, however, the cruise line sent our client thousands of miles away to her home country, where the procedure could be performed at a lower cost to the cruise line.
The surgery was improperly performed and left the young woman paralyzed.
Fighting to Restore Her Independence
We successfully brought our client to Miami, where she received treatment from some of the area’s finest physicians.
Eventually, that treatment allowed her to walk again. Her recovery, however, did not erase the devastating consequences of what had happened. Her mobility remained severely limited, and she continued to suffer from bowel and bladder incontinence.
Her injuries also profoundly affected her marriage and daily life. Her spouse was required to provide round-the-clock care.
A Confidential Settlement Secures Her Future
We ultimately reached a confidential settlement with the cruise line that secured our client’s financial future and helped ensure she would have access to the assistance and care she needed.
Just as importantly, the settlement helped give our client and her spouse the opportunity to live as partners in life rather than requiring her spouse to remain her full-time caretaker.