How does a medical negligence claim for compensation work?

Doctors and nurses in the medical profession are absolutely vital in society. They’re highly regarded and respected for their ability to help us with all sorts of ailments: from broken bones to the rarest of diseases.

We trust them to look after our bodies and minds. We put our faith in them that they will do their very best to help us. But, unfortunately, mistakes can happen; Doctors are human after all. When a medical professional has been negligent, it can be very stressful and cause the victim a lot of problems, which is why there is the need to make claims for medical negligence where applicable.

To bring a medical negligence claim, there are generally two fundamental things to prove: breach of duty, and causation.

Breach of Duty:

As their patient, your doctor has a duty of care towards you. He/she must ensure they diagnose you correctly and that you’re treated for the diagnosis correctly as well.

In a medical negligence claim, an investigation will be made into the standard of care provided by your doctor to assess whether everything was done to ensure you were cared for properly.

If it’s found that they’ve not met the criteria for the appropriate standard of care, they may be deemed to have breached their duty of care towards you.

Causation:

There normally must be a loss or some form of suffering that came directly from the breach of duty in order to claim, as the point of claiming is to recover damages. If you don’t have any suffering or any losses arising out of their breach, there may be nothing to claim for.

A compensation claim is ultimately based on the pain, suffering, loss of amenity, and / or loss of earnings or other expenses arising from the negligence. Without any loss or harm, you can’t really claim compensation as there is probably nothing to actually claim for.

You also need to make sure you don’t do anything to interfere with the causation: For example by ignoring the doctor’s instructions on taking prescription medicine in a specific way, like not taking enough which has hampered your recovery or led to complications.

The causation normally needs to be clear: perhaps a surgical mistake, or incorrect treatment that leads to further pain, suffering and loss of earnings.

I have been a victim of negligent medical care: how can I claim?

There is a process called the Pre action Protocol for the Resolution of Clinical Disputes that should be followed in bringing a medical negligence claim. There are a few key things needed in bringing the claim:

Medical records

These are fundamental to your claim as they form the very basis of it. Evidence of your misdiagnosis or mistreatment may be contained in the records. The medical records can also be evidence of your consequential suffering after the misdiagnosis or mistreatment. Our policy as a firm is to normally obtain the records on our clients’ behalf.

Expert evidence

We use an impartial medical expert to provide a professional medico-legal report on the facts of the case. This is to determine whether or not they would have done the same thing, or perhaps given an alternative diagnosis or treatment. If they would have done something completely different, the original diagnosis or treatment may be seen as negligent. Their report can also cover the extent of the pain and suffering the claimant has.

Letter of claim

This is a letter setting out the facts of the case; why we think the proposed Defendant is at fault; and inviting them to agree to accept liability. We usually require them to respond within four months to either accept or deny liability.

If they accept liability then we’re already halfway there – they’ve admitted it was their fault!

From there, we can obtain medical evidence and enter into negotiations where we will fight for the maximum settlement for your pain, suffering and loss of earnings. If they deny liability, we can take the claim to court and fight for your compensation there.

You deserve to be compensated for a medical professional’s negligence. Don’t suffer in silence! If you don’t say anything, the negligent doctor may not even realise they were negligent and do it again! On top of that, you have a right to be compensated for your suffering and losses.