The standard of care in medical negligence follows the Bolam principle, requiring that a medical practitioner meets the expectations of a responsible body of medical professionals and not engage in practices deemed unreasonable.

A. Introduction

[1] The plaintiff filed a claim for medical negligence against the defendant.

[2] On 6 February 2025, the High Court dismissed the plaintiff's claim with costs following the full trial.

[3] This outlines the rationale for the decision.

B. Salient Facts

[4] This the Court refers to the material facts presented by the plaintiff's counsel in their written submissions.

[5] The plaintiff, Juwariyah binti Sal Hamid @ Ahmad, is an employee of the TNB Repair & Maintenance Sdn Bhd as Finance Manager.

[6] The defendant, Dato' Dr Shahrudin bin Mohd Dun, is a Consultant General Surgeon practicing at KPJ Selangor Specialist Centre (KPJ Selangor).

[7] The plaintiff, who was suffering from recurrent abdominal pain, consulted the defendant at KPJ Selangor on 24 May 2017. The defendant examined the plaintiff and noted tenderness in the plaintiff's right hypochondrial region. A CT scan conducted on 22 May 2017 revealed that the defendant diagnosed gallstone disease and recommended that the plaintiff undergo a laparoscopic cholecystectomy to remove the plaintiff's gallbladder.

[8] On 25 May 2017, the plaintiff underwent a laparoscopic cholecystectomy (the first operation) at KPJ Selangor, performed by the defendant. The plaintiff was discharged from KPJ Selangor on 28 May 2017.

[9] The plaintiff was readmitted to KPJ Selangor on 31 May 2017 due to symptoms indicating obstructive jaundice. Dr Lim Yaw Tzong, a Consultant General Surgeon, performed an endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) the following day. The ERCP was unsuccessful, and Dr Lim could not cannulate the common bile duct.

[10] On 7 June 2017, the plaintiff underwent surgery to explore the cystic duct and common bile duct, which was performed by the defendant (the second operation).

[11] Based on the defendant's report, a one cm-sized impacted cystic duct stone was compressing the common bile duct. The stone was removed, and a stent was placed in situ in the common bile duct.

[12] The plaintiff was discharged from KPJ Selangor on 13 June 2017. On 23 August 2017, the defendant removed the stent via an endoscopic daycare procedure.

[13] On 8 September 2017, during a follow-up appointment with the defendant, the plaintiff's liver function test results were normal, and she reported no complaints. No additional appointment dates were scheduled after that date.

2020

[14] In early April 2020, the plaintiff began experiencing pain in the tip of her right shoulder and the upper right quadrant of her abdomen. Sensing that something was not quite right, she decided to undergo a liver function blood test at a general practitioner (GP) clinic, which revealed elevated liver enzymes.

[15] The plaintiff was referred to a Consultant Physician and Gastroenterologist, Dr Shanthi Palaniappan (Dr Shanthi) at Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur (Pantai Hospital) for further management.

[16] On 16 April 2020, the plaintiff consulted Dr Shanthi at Pantai Hospital KL, who noted that the plaintiff had complained of pain in the right shoulder tip and the right upper quadrant of the abdomen for two weeks. Dr Shanthi ordered a CT scan of the plaintiff's abdomen and pelvis, which was performed on the same day. The scan revealed a mildly dilated common bile duct of 5 to 6 mm.

[17] Following this consultation,