Mother-of-two Angie Shrimpton plans to sue for pain and suffering after contracting Covid while at Barwon Health
A Geelong mother given the greenlight to launch legal action for pain and suffering as a result of contracting Covid in the workplace has spoken out about her next court battle.
Leader
Don't miss out on the headlines from Leader . Followed categories will be added to My News.
A single mum given the greenlight to apply for compensation for damage to her immune system from Covid hopes others still impacted by the virus will follow suit.
Geelong mum of two Angie Shrimpton is among many patients for whom the effects of Covid are lingering for far longer than their time in quarantine.
The County Court last month ruled Ms Shrimpton had suffered a permanent serious impairment of her immune system and allowed her leave to bring proceedings for pain and suffering.
She caught Covid within two days of starting work at the Opal South Valley Aged Care Home in August 2020.
Eight residents of the Covid-ravaged facility in Highton died after contracting the virus, and dozens of infections were recorded among residents and staff.
The Belmont resident also dealt with the trauma of bringing the virus from the Highton facility into her own home that resulted in her two children, Imogen Shrimpton-Heyne, 16, and Jay Shrimpton, 19, becoming infected.
“(The court ruling) is such a big relief. I spent a long time explaining my symptoms to people and I’m honoured to be able to provide reassurance to others that they are not alone,” Ms Shrimpton said.
“I am happy to take responsibility and go first to support others that are also suffering from symptoms of Covid. They need to know that they are not alone.”
Alongside her irritated lungs, she battles stress incontinence — meaning she loses urine when she coughs, sneezes or laughs — and is also experiencing a persistent cough, shortness of breath, a sore throat, nasal drip, fatigue, and headaches.
Ms Shrimpton said she burst into tears when her lawyer, Shine Lawyers, informed her of the court outcome and now she was preparing for another legal battle that, if she won, would pave the way for others in a similar situation.
“It’s been a very isolated illness and catching Covid was a real shock at the time because there was not a lot of Covid around,” she said.
She has yet to work out the compensation amount she’d seek but said the gist of her upcoming legal proceeding would be around the fact that she should have been safe at work but wasn’t and how drastically her life has changed since.
Ms Shrimpton now works as an NDIS support coordinator in Geelong.
Shine Lawyers Victorian general manager Rachel Schutze said Barwon Health was obliged to participate in a pre-litigation negotiation process in the hope of reaching an outcome.
“If that process fails, then formal proceedings will be issued against Barwon Health and the aged care facility,” she said.
Ms Schutze said the County Court judgment officially included the immune system as a body function in the test for serious injury in the WorkCover system and this could assist other sufferers to potentially bring claims for common law damages against allegedly negligent employers.
The consensus of expert medical opinion in County Court proceedings was that Ms Shrimpton was suffering from long Covid syndrome and that it was likely her symptoms would continue indefinitely.
‘My heart is broken’: Shattered wife’s tears over dead husband
The daughter of a much-love family man killed outside a Gippsland pub told the man responsible for his death: “My heart is broken at losing my dad. I miss him a lot”.
Mildura grub sexually assaulted mother at knifepoint
A detestable Mildura deviant pulled a knife on a mother who was changing her five month old daughter, threatening to “stab” her in a horrifying incident.