The Rising Cost of Medical Negligence

Clinical negligence rose to £2.2 billion in 2020 – which is a huge increase compared to the total costs of £1m in 1975. But medical professionals couldn’t have possibly gotten thousands of times more negligent now than they were then – there are other factors at play. With the potential to spend money on damages instead on patient care and learning from mistakes – it’s vital that these issues are identified and amendments are attempted to be made to help and support medical professionals. £2.2 billion is the equivalent to 1.5% of the NHS budget and these costs are forecasted to continue to rise going into the future. With challenges posed by the COVID-19 Pandemic and life after this event – who knows how high these costs to rise to per annum.

 

At Thompson & Co Solicitors, we are one of the leading medical negligence solicitors in Newcastle and the surrounding areas. We have supported our clients in a wide variety of personal injury and clinical negligence claims including mistakes made in A&E, bowel injuries, misdiagnosis of diseases or cancer, GP & Sepsis Negligence as well as other forms of medical negligence. We understand how stressful the situation can be for yourself and your family when a trusted medical professional makes a mistake and causes medical negligence to occur. We will therefore advise and support you during this highly difficult time.

 

This article investigates the rising costs of medical negligence, the future of medical negligence claims as well as what challenges the medical community faces in reducing negligence and how they can be supported to reduce mistakes and clinical negligence issues. To get in touch with a member of our expert team, use an online contact form on our website or telephone now.

 

Significant Cuts to the NHS & The Pandemic

 

COVID-19 funding saw a significant amount of money being provided into NHS funding but their was a 40 billion pound deficit in funding for the NHS in 2008/2009 compared to 2019/20. Significant cuts and other issues (especially the COVID-19 Pandemic) as well as a lack of beds and significant challenges in the winter months has resulted in huge issues for the National Health Service. This month – there were stories reported such as Margaret Root, 82 having to wait for six hours for an ambulance following a stroke and another three hours outside the hospital. Response times for category two emergencies were over 50 minutes on average, 32 minutes above the target response time at the end of October according to the NHS.

 

These cause huge potential issues in terms of medical and clinical negligence cases. With a service that is already stretched to its limits in terms of staffing and other logistical issues – further costs incurred from medical negligence claims in which victims/claimants are paid compensation puts further pressure on the system. This is why action needs to be taken to support this system to allow for capital and funding to be invested into patient care. The Pandemic has not helped the strain on the system and this is a highly important issue that will be highly challenging over the next couple of years.

 

Private Medical Care is Not Viable For Many

 

Increased use of private medical care may seem to be a potential solution. Those who can be seen or have their injuries or illnesses treated in private facilities would ease pressure on the system however this is simply not viable for many people in the UK. Along with the rising cost of living and other issues – public healthcare is vital for many people within the UK. This means that action needs to be taken to support the NHS as well as other actions to continue to try and support the system.

 

The Issue Doesn’t Just Affect England

 

NHS Scotland faces claims of more than £1 billion with one health board reportedly paying damages of £15.5 million on two separate legal actions. NHS Lothian agreed and made an out-of-court settlement of £8.5 million which was reported and believed to be the largest single payment in terms of health-care-related compensation in the country. This case was not affiliated to COVID. But what can this teach us and what does this indicate about the growing amount of costs and potential further crises that the NHS could face across the country?

 

“Hospitals are Not Learning From Their Mistakes in Part Because of Time-Consuming Clinical Negligence Litigation” – Jeremy Hunt MP

 

Hunt proposed that England and Wales should follow Sweden by paying compensation much sooner after harm has been caused. The process of making a medical or clinical negligence claim could be a cause because of the fact that lengthy court battles are related to increased costs within the courts. He also argues that issues such as child disability caused by negligence upon birth would be compensated earlier and would therefore support families with the financial burden of having to adapt to care for a child without having to go through the lengthy process of proving negligence has occurred.

 

The Current Process of Making a Medical Negligence Claim

 

Whether a medical practitioner has been negligent or has provided negligent treatment or care will depend on whether the treatment you received was to a standard that could reasonably have been expected. The practitioner would have a defence to your claim for medical negligence if the treatment you received was in line with the views of a responsible body of medical opinion. This will also include a defence/argument having to be made that proves that your injuries would not have occurred was it not for this negligence. At some stage – a medical report will need to be produced that supports you in your claim that is written by a relevant medical professional that can make the judgement in support of your claim.

The medical negligence claim process can take extended periods of time which could arguably add strains onto victims/claimants as well as defendants when making claims or claims being argued and processed in court. It’s undeniable that strains on the NHS as well as health care services will be having an impact and maybe cause clinical and medical negligence. Increased waiting times for ambulances as well as appointments such as shortages of beds in NHS hospitals and other pressures increase the likelihood of issues and mistakes occuring. It’s therefore vital that these services are supported as well as lessons learned where negligence occurs to help support patients and ensure that lessons are learned and mistakes are not repeated. This is vital in supporting this strained health service whilst also reducing the risk that patients take and reducing the number of medical negligence risks that are taken. 

 

At Thompson & Co Solicitors, we are one of the leading medical negligence solicitors specialising in medical negligence in Newcastle and the surrounding areas. We have supported our clients in a wide variety of personal injury and clinical negligence claims including mistakes made in A&E, bowel injuries, misdiagnosis of diseases or cancer, GP & Sepsis Negligence as well as other forms of medical negligence. We understand how stressful the situation can be for yourself and your family when a trusted medical professional makes a mistake and causes medical negligence to occur. We will therefore advise and support you during this highly difficult time.