A pensioner who was almost blinded in one eye after it was injected with the wrong type of fluid has won £15,000 compensation in an out of court settlement with Bupa.

The woman was among 20 elderly patients from the Brighton and Hove area whose eyesight was damaged in bungled cataract operations at the Bupa Gatwick Park Hospital in February 1999.

The patients were sent to the private hospital in Horley as Brighton Health Care NHS Trust tried to cut record waiting lists.

Some affected suffered near-blindness after being wrongly injected with a liquid which contained a preservative and was for external use only.

The total compensation payouts could eventually top £300,000.

The mistake led to an independent investigation which published its report last December.

It blamed the mix-up on national pressure to slash waiting lists and highlighted a breakdown in communication between staff at the Sussex Eye Hospital in Brighton and the Bupa hospital.

The pensioner, who is in her early eighties and lives in Saltdean, said: "The incident did enormous psychological as well as visual damage. I was shaking like a jelly and crying all the time.

"It was an absolute shock and was very frightened, I could not believe such a thing could happen in this day and age.

"It affected my late husband deeply but at least now I can afford to take taxis and pay someone to look after the garden."

The eyesight of Albert Holder, 92, of Mayfield Avenue, Peacehaven, was also affected during one of the operations.

He said:"There was a time when I thought I'd lost the sight in my right eye and would never see properly again.

"Luckily things are getting a lot better now but I was very worried at the time."

Another victim, who is 82 years old and lives in Hove, said: "My eye is still pretty bad, my vision is very blurred and now and then I get a jab of pain in the eyeball.

"I saw a surgeon three weeks ago who asked me if I wanted to a have a cornial graft which is quite serious."

Solicitor Sarah Mynard, who secured the payout, said: "As well as considerable visual impairment my client suffered a great deal of pain and trauma which resulted in a loss of confidence.

"I hope the compensation settlement will give her a new lease of life."

A Bupa spokeswoman said: "Following the inquiry, the solution in question has been removed from our theatres and other clinical practices have been put into place to provide the best possible care for our patients."