When you consult a GP or visit a hospital for treatment, you are entitled to expect to be treated with an appropriate standard of skill and care. However, you may feel that you have been let down by the medical profession by receiving substandard care. If this has caused you injury, you may have a claim against the doctor or hospital which treated you without the requisite level of care.
There are many kinds of claims of negligent medical treatment. A doctor may fail to detect signs of a serious illness, such as cancer, which could lead to severe personal injury. There may be a failure to diagnose other serious conditions, such as heart disease or meningitis. An operation may be performed negligently, leaving the patient with health difficulties. Or there may be medical negligence in the course of delivering a child, which leaves the child with lifelong problems. Whenever medical treatment occurs, there is the potential for it to be carried out to a substandard level and for a medical negligence claim to arise.
To succeed
in a claim for medical negligence, it is important to establish three
things. First, you have to show that there has been a breach of duty by a medical professional. To do this, you will normally need a report
from a medical expert who can say what the standard of care should be
and can give his opinion on whether your treatment fell below that standard.
Secondly, you will need to show that the breach of duty caused your
injury. For example, if you suffer medical complications as a result
of surgery, it does not follow that the cause of your complications
was necessarily negligent medical treatment. Again, expert evidence
will usually be needed to show that any complications or injuries were
caused by a breach of duty. And finally, you will of course have to
show that you did suffer some kind of injury or loss. It is possible
that careless treatment may not actually result in any long-term injury,
in which case compensation will probably be limited and it may not be
worthwhile suing.
If you wish to discuss a possible claim, please consult our Directory of Solicitors to find a solicitor in your area who may be able to help you..