A man who successfully sued hospital bosses after facing an “inordinate” wait for a desperately-needed operation is to share his compensation with a teenage brain cancer survivor.

Kamal Williams told The Royal Gazette he was so touched by the story of brave 13-year-old N’Keema Virgil that he wanted to perform a “random act of kindness” and have something positive come out of his harrowing ordeal at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

“Whatever I get, I am going to put some aside for my children’s education but I wanted to give a part of whatever damages I get to this young girl for whatever she needs to put towards her medical expenses,” he said.

Mr Williams launched a $100,000 civil lawsuit against Bermuda Hospitals Board after he attended KEMH with appendicitis in May 2011 and had to wait 12 hours for an appendectomy.

Once the surgery began, it was discovered that his appendix had ruptured causing complications, including sepsis.

The Southampton father-of-two remained on a respirator for seven days after the surgery and was in hospital for a total of two weeks.

He was initially awarded $2,000 in damages by Puisne Judge Stephen Hellman in the Supreme Court but is now likely to be in line for much more after the Court of Appeal ruled that the “numerous delays” at the hospital contributed to the damage he suffered.

The appeal panel found that the wait for surgery was “inordinate” when “viewed against the background of the physical signs exhibited by the appellant on his arrival at the KEMH, his tossing and screaming”.

This newspaper reported on the Court of Appeal ruling the same day in March that we revealed how Dellwood Middle School student N’Keema had successfully battled brain cancer and was on the road to recovery.

Both articles appeared on the front page and Mr Williams said he was gripped by the story of the teenager and all she went through at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

“I thought ‘here is somebody who probably needs the money more than I do’,” said the risk analyst. “I have had the financial means and the opportunity and the patience to do something about my situation.”

Mr Williams recalled how just a few days before he ended up in KEMH he had bought lunch for a line of customers at a Hamilton deli in another “random act of kindness”.

“I was in the ICU for a week and on a general ward for a week,” he said. “During that time I remember thinking ‘why is this happening to me? I just did something nice for people.

“Why am I suffering and having this critical illness? Why do anything good if life is going to turn around and get you back?’

“After the appeal was upheld, I just felt the same feeling I had when I went into the deli to just do something. It’s kind of, for me, come full circle for me to do something nice again.”

He described himself as someone who doesn’t generally show emotion and whose family was likely to be surprised by his pledge to N’Keema.

“I’m not touchy feely with my family,” he said. “I have this cold exterior but some things do matter to me. I do know right from wrong. There are certain things that matter to me more than myself.”

A court hearing to determine the damages to be paid to Mr Williams is set for later this month.

In the meantime, he has let N’Keema’s mother Richelle know of his plans for part of his payout.

“Her mom was very happy,” he said.

N’Keema is now cancer-free, having undergone surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, but she still needs to take medication, which is only partially paid for by health insurance.

Her mother thanked this newspaper for putting Mr Williams in touch with her, adding that she had “really been so grateful for the support” of the community “in so many ways”.