Should my friend sue the ER doctor after a metal fragment was missed in his eye?
My friend is a welder in Ontario and is currently on a valid work permit.
He felt like something was stuck in his eye after work, so he went to an optometrist. The optometrist was concerned there might be a metal foreign body and referred him to the emergency department.
At the ER, he told the doctor that he is a welder and specifically mentioned the possibility of a piece of metal being in his eye. We even asked the doctor 2–3 times if he was sure there was nothing in the eye, and he reassured us that there wasn’t. As far as we could tell, he didn’t examine the eye using the slit-lamp microscope (the eye examination machine). He simply flushed the eye and discharged him.
His symptoms never completely went away, and after almost one month, the irritation became much worse. He returned to the ER, where they found and removed an old, rusted metal fragment from his eye. The doctor said it appeared to have been there for quite some time.
He’s now requesting all of his medical records from both visits.
My questions are:
Does this sound like something he should discuss with a medical malpractice lawyer?
If the delay causes future complications like vision problems, scarring, or ongoing pain, should he be taking legal action now to protect his rights?
Has anyone in Ontario experienced something similar?
Also, could consulting a lawyer or filing a medical negligence claim have any impact on his future permanent residence application, since he’s currently on a work permit?
We’re just trying to understand whether this is something worth pursuing or if we’re overthinking it. Any advice or similar experiences would be appreciated.