A FORMER emergency services operator has lost her legal claim for damages against the fire service.

Karen Devine, 38, alleged she lost her job at Kent Fire and Rescue headquarters in Maidstone after developing an ulcer caused by a new telephone headset.

Mrs Devine, a fire control officer from Sittingbourne, who is married to a fire fighter, sued Kent and Medway Towns Fire Authority for damages.

She told Canterbury County Court that she needed surgery for the ulcer, leading to a loss of money and finally the loss of her job.

The court heard how Mrs Devine had worked at the control room in Maidstone, dealing with 999 calls, since 1985.

Towards the end of 1997, a new computerised system for handling calls was installed, which included operatives using new headsets.

The mother of two claimed she had been used to wearing a mushroom-shaped ear tip, but found it too soft and switched to a conical earpiece to hear better.

But in 1998 she developed a problem in her right ear, which became ulcerated and very painful.

She wrote to her bosses explaining the problem and informing them her GP had subsequently diagnosed an infection in the right ear.

In July, she had an operation but did not return to her job with the fire brigade and in January 2000 she was dismissed on health grounds.

The court heard that between September 1999 and June 200, she took an access course and eventually completed a three year law degree at Canterbury University, graduating with first class honours.

A consultant psychiatrist concluded she had developed a phobia for any type of headset and his report claimed she was able to work in any capacity providing did not involve the use of an earpiece.

He said she had been able to study and lead a full domestic and leisure life despite her ear symptoms.

The fire service had offered her alternative work, but Mrs Devine rejected them because she wanted to maintain her previous shift pattern. Mrs Devine sued her former bosses for breach of a statutory duty and a common law duty of care.

The court was told that the earpieces became a problem when they hardened and shrank during frequent use.

But Judge David Mitchell ruled Mrs Devine had not proved "on a balance of probabilities" that the earpiece had caused her injury. He said the ulcer formed in a part of her ear not touched by the earpiece.

He said: "The only proper conclusion to this case is to dismiss the claim."