Clinical Negligence Claims

Hospitals and medical practitioners should be safe to turn to when you’ve been injured or fallen ill. However, sometimes, patients don’t receive the quality treatment they expect or deserve, and the consequences can be life-changing or threatening.
Clinical negligence claims are highly technical and case-specific. They consider whether the healthcare professional failed in their duty to protect their patient and whether their negligence directly resulted in the patient suffering harm or even loss of life. Read our blog for more information about what exactly clinical negligence is.

Types of Clinical Negligence Claims

Due to the unique nature of healthcare treatment, each clinical negligence claim is different and might warrant different compensation. However, medical negligence often falls into a few categories.

Medication Errors: Both prescribing and dispensing errors can occur, such as prescribing the wrong dose or type of medication.

Our medical negligence solicitors will assess whether this error caused harm to the patient and investigate who the act of negligence lies with. The negligence could lie with the GP who prescribed the medication or the pharmacist who dispensed it.

GP Negligence: Negligence by a general practitioner can occur due to inadequate care during a GP appointment or examination. This can be in the form of:

• Misdiagnosis of illness
• Prescription of the wrong medication or dosage of medication
• Failure to refer the patient for appropriate tests or specialist care

Hospital and A&E Negligence: Negligence at hospitals is a common form of medical negligence claim. This includes:

• Not receiving an acceptable standard of treatment
• Harmful or excessive delays to treatment
• Medical errors experienced while in the hospital
• Contracting infections while in hospital
• Misdiagnosis of a condition in hospital or A&E

Surgical Negligence: Surgical negligence can occur during or after an operation, leading to pain and suffering or further medical problems. Our no win no fee clinical negligence solicitors can help with claims made as a result of the following:

• The incorrect operation was performed
• Surgery was performed on the wrong part of the body
• Foreign objects were left in the body following surgery
• An infection was caused due to insufficient cleaning of operating tools, or inadequate care post-operation
• The risks of surgery were incorrectly communicated to the patient, thereby not fully gaining their informed consent
• Incorrect levels of anaesthetic were injected
• The suitability of the patient for surgery was incorrectly or not checked at all

Fatal Claims: Death due to medical negligence claims can be pursued by a dependent of the individual who passed away, including spouses, children, parents, and other close relatives. The most common fatal claims relate to:

• Misdiagnosis of conditions, leading to the patient’s condition worsening to the point of death

• Excessive delays to diagnosis or treatment, rendering treatment options unviable or too late
• Death caused during surgery

Pregnancy and Gynaecology Injury Claims: Suffering an injury or experiencing neglect in medical care while pregnant can occur in many forms, including:

• Wrongful birth and occurrence of congenital disabilities
• Injuries experienced during the birth
• Misdiagnosed miscarriages
• Pregnancy as a result of failed sterilisation
• Negligence experienced during IVF and fertility treatments, including the wrongful destruction of embryos, eggs or sperm and implanting an embryo into the wrong patient.
• Stillbirth or neonatal death
• Failed abortions
• Negligence during the birthing process resulting in Erb’s palsy or cerebral palsy

Defective Medical Device Claims: Newtons can help you make a claim if defective equipment, such as faulty defibrillators, is used by medical professionals or if defective devices are placed into the body during surgery. 

How does the Medical Negligence Claim Process Work?

The first step in any medical negligence claim is contacting a qualified solicitor. Our expert medical negligence solicitors will assess the case and determine whether there is plausible evidence of negligence and whether it caused physical or mental harm to the patient. 

We will consider medical records and consult independent medical practitioners who act as expert witnesses for the expected level of care that the negligent practitioner should have provided. 

Our solicitors will then draft a detailed letter of claim setting out the basis of the clinical negligence claim, which will be considered by medical negligence solicitors representing hospitals and doctors.

If an agreement is reached, we will help you negotiate the level of compensation that you will receive. If an agreement cannot be reached, the case may be taken to court and decided by a judge.

How Much Clinical Negligence Compensation Are You Entitled to?

Successful clinical negligence claims will award the claimant with monetary compensation. 

Depending on the circumstances of your claim, you might be compensated for:

• Pain, suffering, and loss of amenity
• Loss of earnings
• Care costs
• Medication costs
• Private treatment
• Rehabilitation costs
• Travel expenses
• Equipment and the cost of adapting your home or vehicle
• Funeral expenses
• Monetary compensation for the loss of a loved one

Unfortunately, a successful negligence claim cannot guarantee an apology from the practitioner at fault or that the practitioner will be punished.

During the claim, those responsible for your negligent treatment claim may accept responsibility. If that happens, we will aim to secure interim compensation payments to fund private medical care and ongoing expenses. However, once your clinical negligence claim is settled, these interim payments will be deducted from your final compensation award.

Our No Win No Fee Medical Negligence Claims Solicitors

Our team of clinical negligence specialists handle claims in both the NHS and the private sector, and the majority of these claims are dealt with on a ‘no win no fee’ basis. This means you will not have to pay for our services unless your claim succeeds. Get in touch with our team today, and we will review your case to determine the best course of action for your clinical negligence claim.