Hereford diabetic schizophrenic defies medical expectations

Wye Valley NHS Trust, which runs Hereford County Hospital, asked a judge to let doctors amputate a diabetic man's leg

A diabetic schizophrenic who was the subject of a hospital trust bid to force the amputation of his "putrefying" foot has outlived medical expectations, a lawyer has revealed.

The Wye Valley NHS Trust asked the Court of Protection - which deals with people who lack the capacity to make their own decisions - to force the man to have his foot removed in September.

It said he could have died in days.

But lawyers said the man, in his 70s, is still alive six months later.

More on this and other stories from Hereford and Worcester

Mr Justice Peter Jackson, who heard the case in London last year, ruled the request for an "enforced amputation" below the knee would have been against the best interests of the patient, who cannot be named, after visiting and talking to him.

A lawyer from the Official Solicitor's office, which provides legal support to vulnerable people, backed the trust's plans to stop the infection spreading from the foot around the body.

Mr Justice Jackson has now agreed the man's survival can be reported.