Medical Negligence Solicitors
Our expert medical negligence solicitors can help you with a free consultation to explore if you have a case and to discuss next steps. Contact us today to book your appointment.
What is Medical Negligence?
Medical negligence is when clinical professionals fail in providing care to the reasonable standard that led to an injury or make an existing condition worse.
Medical negligence and medical malpractice arise where medical professionals or organisations are negligent or fail in their duty of care. Causation must be proven to establish medical negligence. This simply means it must be shown that the breach of duty caused an existing condition to worsen or that it led to an injury. This can happen in numerous ways, such as incorrect treatment, surgical mistakes, or misdiagnosis.
A medical negligence claim must usually be brought within three years of a person becoming aware they received negligent treatment. This may not be apparent straight away and may arise as one’s health worsens. Albeit there are exceptions to this three-year rule for children or individuals who lack mental capacity. For a child, a medical negligence claim may be made at any time before they reach 18 years of age.
As from then the three-year rules applies, meaning the claim must be started before their 21st birthday. Moreover, no time limit is applicable where a person lacks the capacity to bring the medical negligence claim themselves.
What is No Win No Fee for a Medical Negligence claim?
It is possible for medical malpractice and negligence claims to be brought on a no win no fee basis. This means that you would not pay any legal costs upfront and would only pay if your claim were successful. Regardless of this, if your case is won, the other party to the claim would be liable to pay most of your legal fees for your medical negligence solicitors on top of the compensation you would receive.
Medical Negligence Solicitors in Oxfordshire
Our no win no fee medical negligence solicitors in Oxford can help you with a free consultation to explore if you have a case and discuss next steps.
Early settlement for compensation can be made for patients medical negligence claims without the need for court action where there is clear evidence of wrong doing by the medical professional, which could be the doctor’s negligence, at fault and admission as to guilt. Medical malpractice damages can then be considered.
Our medical negligence solicitors understand that being a victim of medical negligence can affect more than your physical health. If you or someone close to you has been impacted by medical malpractice, we can offer a free consultation to listen and advise whether we feel you have merit to start a claim on a no win no fee basis.
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Medical Negligence FAQ’s
What are the grounds to make a claim for psychiatric injury?
The different factual situations where a claim for psychiatric injury or illness succeed are as follows:
- A claimant suffers physical injury with accompanying psychiatric injury
- A claimant does not suffer any physical injury but suffers psychiatric harm as a result of being a participant in a dangerous event (a primary victim), provided the physical injury was foreseeable.
- The claimant is a secondary victim, i.e. they suffer a psychiatric injury owing to what has negligently happened to someone else, subject to forseeability and policy conditions
How to qualify for compensation for psychiatric injury?
In order to qualify for compensation, unless accompanied by a physical injury, psychiatric conditions falling short of a recognisable psychiatric condition cannot be compensated.
There are certain exceptions to the general rule that no medical negligence damages are recoverable in the absence of a recognised psychiatric illness
Can you get compensation for fear and anxiety?
It is well established that where a physical injury exists, an award for pain, suffering and loss of amenity can be enhanced to reflect emotional reactions to the cause of the injury by medical negligent professionals such as fear, anxiety, distress.
A Claimant seeking damages for psychiatric injury must establish that he or she is suffering “not merely grief ,distress or any other normal emotion ,but a positive psychiatric illness”
What are the signs a medical negligent patient could be suffering from a psychiatric injury?
Common signs that a claimant may be suffering from some form of psychiatric injury are references in medical records or reports (or indeed in the claimant’s own account of their condition) to:
- depression
- diminished self-esteem
- low mood
- thoughts of death
- irritability
- impaired memory or concentration
- flashbacks or panic attack
- impaired memory or concentration
- flashbacks or panic attack
- a reduction in general coping skills
- recurrent nightmares
- General avoidance in respect of people places or subject matter connected with the incident
- reduced libido
- pain or disability that cannot be explained by reference to the claimant’s physical condition by the relevant (non-psychiatric) medical expert
- change in personality
What types of psychiatric injury are recognised by the courts?
- post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- chronic fatigue syndrome
- chronic pain syndrome
- pathological grief reaction
Medical Negligence: What psychiatric conditions generate claims?
There is no single exhaustive list. As a rule of thumb, if you have an appropriately qualified psychiatric expert who states that a claimant has suffered a named injury then that claimant will almost certainly be entitled to recover damages.
What is a primary victim?
Primary victims are :
- Those claimants who were involved either immediately or immediately as a participant
- Those within the actual area of physical danger when the accident occurred who were directly at risk of physical injury or reasonably believed this was so.
- Rescuers who go to the aid of others involved in the accident who have been exposed to danger or reasonably believed they were in danger.
- Cases where the claimant was an “unwilling participant” in that they were put in the position of being or of thinking that they were about to be or have been the involuntary cause of another’s death or injury
What is a secondary victim?
Secondary victims are:
- Those claimants who were no more than a passive and unwilling participant of injuries caused to others.
- Close ties of love and affection with the victim (this can only be assumed in the case of spouses and parents);
- That they were present at the accident or its immediate aftermath, and
- That the psychiatric illness was caused by the direct perception of the accident or its aftermath rather than via a third party
- That the mechanism of the injury was indeed “nervous shock” i.e. it arose out of the sudden appreciation by sight or sound of a horrifying event
- That the illness suffered is a recognised psychiatric injury or illness
What possible medical negligence claims exist for fatal accidents?
There are three possible heads of damages, namely:
- A dependency claim for the financial losses suffered by the dependants of the deceased;
- An award of bereavement damages; and
- A claim for the funeral expenses if paid by the dependants.
What are special damages?
Past financial losses up to the date of trial or settlement
When medical negligence proceedings are served the claimant is required to serve a schedule of loss.
Often called a schedule of special damages which it not necessarily an accurate title. It should include ‘details of any past and future expenses and losses’ (CPR PD 16.4.2). It should have a statement of truth at the end.
What are general damages?
Non financial losses and future losses
What constitutes past losses?
- Loss of earnings
- Loss of marriage prospects
- Loss of enjoyment of holiday or leisure
- Medical expense
- Travel expense
- DIY & gardening
- Car maintenance
- Home services & care
- Accommodation
- Damaged items
- Aids and equipment
- Miscellaneous
What constitutes future losses?
- Loss of earnings
- Loss of marriage prospects
- Loss of enjoyment of holiday or leisure
- Medical expense
- Travel expense
- DIY & gardening
- Car maintenance
- Home services & care
- Accommodation
- Damaged items
- Aids and equipment
- Miscellaneous
Birth Injury: How Long Do You Have To Make A Claim?
You can claim on behalf of your child any time before their 18th birthday. From 18 they have three years to make a claim (until they turn 21).