Pages

Sunday 16 June 2013

Know the Requirements and Compensation for Medical Negligence Claims



Take a look at the two common questions raised by people who intends to file for medical negligence claims in the United Kingdom.

1. What are the requirements for medical negligence claims in the UK?

A person who wants to bring a claim needs to meet the law requirements for personal injury. First, it is essential to prove the existence of duty of care. Healthcare providers and healthcare professionals are responsible in rendering a standard of care. Both inpatient and outpatient facilities are covered in the claim. Inpatient facilities include hospitals, and nursing homes. Outpatient facilities include doctor’s offices, dental clinics and medical laboratories. Healthcare professionals such as doctors, surgeons, physiotherapists, dentists and nurses are responsible to render a standard of care. Second, a breach of duty needs to be proven. A healthcare professional who failed to render a standard of care such as a misdiagnosis, wrong treatment and incorrect prescription of drugs has breached a duty of care. Third, causation between the breach of duty and injury needs to be established. It is necessary to prove that a malpractice is the cause of the injury. Lastly, an injury needs to be proven. Injury can be physical or psychological. A medical report should be submitted to establish the validity of the claim.

2. What are the kinds of compensation that can be granted to a claimant?

Medical negligence claims compensates for sufferings endured by the claimant. General and Special damages can be granted to the claimant. The first one compensates for the non-quantifiable aspect while the second is a compensation for quantifiable aspect of the claim.

General damages pertain to the physical and psychological pain endued by an individual. It includes loss of enjoyment of life, loss of reputation, disfigurement, impairment, loss of use, loss of consortium and loss of income opportunity. On other hand, Special damages compensates for the economic loss experienced by a person after the incident. It includes loss of income, medical and care costs, travel expenses and other expenses. Both actual and estimated losses of earnings are included. It takes into account the pay increases, promotion prospects and other benefits of the individual. Medical and care costs such as medical expenses, hospital charges, treatment fees,  surgical support and care provided by other people are included. Travel expenses like trips to the hospitals, attending appointment with an expert and other journeys related to the injury are covered. Miscellaneous expenses such as additional utility costs, items purchased because of the injury and other out-of-pocket expenses are also included.

An expert lawyer provides legal assistance about the compensation. It is recommended to seek legal advice from the expert.

Singing during Surgery



Humans have an incredible ability to do two things at the same time. Actually, a person can do more than two activities simultaneously. How about singing while listening to a favorite song from an IPod, jogging and at the same time sight seeing? Oh well, it’s normal and anyone can do it. But here’s an amazing thing, a man is singing during a brain surgery. What?! How can that be? Read on and find out.

The musician-actor has been suffering from Parkinson’s disease. A brain-stimulation surgery was carried out to help him deal with hand and eye tremors.  The surgeons implanted an electrode emitter to the affected part of the man’s brain. They woke up the patient during surgery to ensure that the electrode emitter was implanted correctly in the right part. Surprisingly, the musician-actor strummed his guitar and sang a song whilst the doctors are still doing the procedure. Not only that, he was able to send a message to his loved ones and managed to hold a cup of water. That was great! An infusion of medicine, technology and social media unveiled when that medical breakthrough was captured in video.

It’s unbelievable to hear news like this. Even the attention-grabbing headlines about a man singing during surgery seem to be impossible. But it did happen. That’s the wonder of science and technology. Above all, it is God who made it happen. Doctors are just instruments.

Good thing that the operation turned out to be successful. Some patients suffered from injuries caused by surgical errors. These are some of the cases handled by negligence solicitors.

The development of modern technology and medical advancement serves as a tool to meet the needs of people. Technology continues to advance. People are becoming passionate in discovering for more cures for diseases, invention of additional equipment, development of more gadgets and other fascinating things in life. Food, shelter and clothing are man’s basic needs. As time goes by, these three basic needs seem to have more and more subheading. There are underlying items for each need. People expect to live a decent life.

Relevance of Medical Negligence Claims No Win No Fee



Medical negligence claims on a no win no fee basis helps rebuild shattered lives. Why is this so? Keep reading and find out.

Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) commonly known as no win no fee paved the way to an easier access to the justice system in the UK. People injured due to the mistakes of others can file a case even without sufficient funds. It lies on the condition that if it is unsuccessful, the client will not have to pay the solicitor. On the other hand, if it is successful, the client will have to pay the normal fees plus a success fee. The passage of the new law on personal injury claim that took effect on April 2013 can be clearly explained by a legal counsel.

The solicitor usually recommends taking out an After-the-Event (ATE) insurance to cover for any potential liability. This protects the client from any legal costs including disbursements.

There is a time limit of filing medical negligence claims no win no fee in the UK. An expert solicitor provides legal advice on how to bring a claim including the requirements and all the details involved in the compensation. It is better to consult an expert and know the whole process.

How to Win a Clinical Negligence Claim

How do you obtain medical negligence claims on a no win no fee basis in the UK?

In order to achieve compensation for a malpractice, the injured person needs to meet the law requirements of UK.

First, it is important to prove the presence of duty of care. Healthcare providers owe a duty to take care of their patients. NHS hospitals, private hospitals and healthcare professionals such as GPs, surgeons, dentists, physiotherapists, nurses and hospital staff are responsible in delivering a standard of care. It is expected from them to diagnose the health condition, investigate the symptoms, provide the right treatment, prescribe correct medication, recommend the necessary lab tests, administer the correct medication and comply with the safety procedures.

Second, a breach of duty should be proven. A doctor who commits negligence has breached the duty of care. The breach of duty can be a mistake like a misdiagnosis, failure to investigate the symptoms, delayed diagnosis, wrong treatment or incorrect prescription of drugs.

Third, it is necessary to prove the causation between the breach of duty and injury. The link between the two should be established.  It can be achieved with the assistance of a lawyer who specialises in compensation for injuries.

Lastly, the injury sustained by the person needs to be proven. It is essential to show evidence of the injury or illness suffered by person.