Doctors and other medical practitioners usually provide a high level of service to their patients. Unfortunately, on occasion mistakes do happen and in these situations patients will be quite emotional and upset. The potential risks involved in medical treatment may be forgotten; however the patient will be entitled to an explanation.
A patient can claim for clinical negligence when it can be proven that the medical practitioner in charge of the patient provided care that was below standard, and this resulted in a mental or physical injury. There have been many instances where medical negligence has been reported. In some cases patients have complained of not being notified of possible risks in treatment, sloppiness in surgical procedures, and problems in medication.
The government figures have indicated that, around two people a week find surgeons have left behind foreign objects such as clips and screws, and surgical swabs. In the past year alone, the highest payouts included 115,000 to a person who had the tip of a needle left inside them, 75,000 to a patient who later found a surgical clip, and 60,000 to someone who still had ‘packaging material’ inside them after an operation.
Liability for medical negligence can apply to a range of medical professionals, these include:
Dentists
GP’s
privately funded health practitioners
all NHS medical staff and hospitals
GP’s
What is the Duty of care?
For the claim to be successful, the patient will have to prove that some serious errors were made in the course of treatment, which no other competent doctor would have made. If however, it is shown that another doctor within the same speciality would have endorsed the same method of treatment, and then it is unlikely the patient will succeed in their claim.
It is up to the medical practitioner to keep up to date with the latest developments in the medical field. This will be an important factor to be considered in deciding the medical practitioners’ liability. The method of treatment used by the medical practitioner in question will be assessed in accordance with the current medical knowledge at the time of the incident.
As the area of clinical negligence is highly complex, it can be difficult to establish whether it was the doctor’s error that substantially contributed to the damage suffered. Thus, the patient will have to prove that the medical practitioner’s error was an isolated incident that contributed to the damage or injury caused to the patient.
In the case of was Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee it was stated that ‘the test as to whether there has been negligence or notis the standard of the ordinary skilled man exercising and professing to have that special skill. A man need not possess the highest expert skill; it is well established law that it is sufficient if he exercises the ordinary skill of an ordinary competent man exercising that particular art’.
The medical practitioner concerned should be able to escape liability, providing they can find expert medical witnesses that would support the same method of treating a patient, as has been outlined in the Bolam case. Quite often, particularly in highly complex cases, there can be more than one way to treat a patient and depending on the situation, either way could be acceptable. Nevertheless, once a recognised body of medical practice has shown that they would support the same method of treatment, it is unlikely that the doctor will be found in breach of his duty of care.
Whilst a doctor may have a defence, it has now been estimated that clinical negligence payouts by the NHS are expected to rise by 80% next year. With the average victim pocketing 17,900 the mistakes have cost the NHS a total of 9 million over the past five years, with payouts made to more than 550 patients.
Ayesha Salim , editor of the UK Lawyers Network, writes articles about solicitors, Personal injury Lawyer, Accident compensation, find a solicitor, legal, lawyer, law help advice, solicitors litigation
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