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Friday 11 January 2013

Medical Negligence - who cares?



Clinical Negligence cases can be amongst the most demanding and distressing. Victims include children born with catastrophic brain injuries who will be dependant of care and assistance for the whole of their lives. We often read press reports of damages in millions of pounds. Whilst these might seem like lottery wins they normally cover the basic care that a victim will require for life.

It has been the case for many years that claimants are entitled to be paid the cost of private care. This is because they have the need for such care through no fault of their own and are entitled to have those needs met by their compensation rather than through the general NHS budget. The type of available care has improved over time. Victims live longer. There seems to be an increase in medical incidents. As a result of all of these factors the cost of care has increased.

The Medical Defence Union, an insurance company, have complained that the costs are unsustainable and are arguing that victims should rely on the NHS  


Their argument focuses on the cost to the NHS of having to pay out such huge amounts. But one suspects that they have their own agenda here. Like any other insurer they want to reduce the cost of claims.

But their argument is misconceived. If a person suffers a life changing injury through the fault of another then they are entitled to be compensated, including the cost of medical and other care for as long as necessary. This is not limited to medical cases. If a person becomes paraplegic following a car accident which is another motorist’s fault then their care is paid for by that driver’s insurer. If somebody loses a limb because it becomes trapped in an unguarded machine at work then the employer’s insurer pays.

Why should a victim be at a disadvantage just because their life has been ruined by a doctor? The principle has to apply across the board.

If the Medical Defence or the NHS Trusts want to see a real reduction in claims then they should focus on taking steps to reduce the risk of such incidents happening in the first place.

We must get away from this rhetoric of blaming victims for the cost of such claims. I have never acted for a victim who would not swap all the money in the world for a better, or any in some cases, quality of life.


16 comments:

  1. In such cases when a patience is mistreated because of wrong or medical negligence, the patience should seek help of a professional Personal Injury Attorney. He can help him get a compensation for the loss. I know the loss can't be reversed but at least he the patience can have something in return which can make his life easier.
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    Personal Injury Attorney Las Vegas

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  2. I think it is right that this is looked at. If it is too much of a burden on the NHS then it needs to be investigation. However, the aim should be to limit the cases of medical negligence occurring to begin with rather than just the amounts being paid in medical negligence cases. They need to look at the most common instances of negligence and how procedures can be put in place to limit these occurrences. All of these are preventable so reducing them should be very possible.

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  3. Many people have suffered illness or injury as a result of the treatment given to them by doctors or hospital staff and I'm one among them who have not acted properly. Later I browsed through the internet and came to know that these cases can be covered in clinical negligence compensation:

    Incorrect diagnosis
    Incorrect treatment
    Important symptoms ignored
    A delay in diagnosis or treatment
    Failure of a medical product or device

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  4. Just everyone must care about this issue. Being a victim of medical negligence is just too difficult as it does not only worsen health condition but also hurts the pocket.

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  5. It's interesting (and worrying) to see how similar medical negligence is becoming all around the world - with most medical errors going unreported, insurance the focus of policymakers, and medical negligence victims often left inadequately compensated. Thanks for the read - Medical Negligence Claim (Australia).

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  6. Everybody must aware that medical malpractice is very important to know. It's very traumatic when our family is involved on the negligence from medical practitioners. There is always somebody who can help us to win our case Houston birth injury lawyer is expert to handle cases related to medical malpractice.

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  7. If you are disappointed with the negligence of doctors, you just need to remind them of the provision of filing medical negligence claime against them, so that they realize their inattentiveness and get ready to help patients with due care.

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  8. You should hire an accident solicitor to assist you in making doctors negligence compensation from the injury suffered. They will help you process your case so that you can get the accident claim you deserve.

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  9. It should be understood that clinical negligence claim cannot be gained successfully without seeking the help from experienced people that have been dealing with similar cases for years.

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  10. More people are becoming aware that they can make Professional Negligence Claims if they have suffered a malpractice.

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