Do I have a claim?

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It is often very difficult, particularly in complex clinical negligence claims or claims involving serious injury or death, to assess, at the outset whether or not the claim will succeed.In the first instance, a member of our team will either telephone you or meet with you to discuss the potential claim. The information that we will require will be as follows:
 

  1. Contact details of the potential Claimant in the action
  2. A brief summary of the events giving rise to the potential claim including , where appropriate the treatment dates.
  3. Details about the outcome of the treatment i.e. your current condition and any residual disabilities
  4. Copies of any complaints documents that you have obtained i.e. your letter of complaint and any response received
  5. Details of any witnesses who may be able to corroborate your evidence.

 
 
Having spoken to you or met with you , we will advise you whether the claim merits further investigation. When assessing the merits of your claim we will be considering whether the standard of care you received fell below an acceptable standard and whether or not that as a result of the substandard care you received, an injury was caused. For a more detailed explanation of this criteria please refer to " How to claim ".

Events that may suggest error
It is often difficult for a patient to know if he or she has been injured in the course of treatment because the problem may be hidden.  Here are some events that might justify further investigation:-

Accident and Emergency Department

  • Reattending after being discharged
  • Missed fractures
  • Injuries to patients within the department
  • Deaths within the department
  • Cardiac/respiratory arrest on or subsequent to attendance
  • Death shortly after attendance

 
Anaesthetics

  • Permanent neurological damage
  • Kidney or liver failure
  • Accidental damage to teeth, lips, gums
  • Loss of memory
  • A degree of paralysis
  • Myocardial infarction
  • Laryngeal damage
  • Fitting
  • Burns

Intensive Care

  • Endotracheal tube complications
  • Arterial/central line complications
  • Drug errors, especially infusions
  • Hospital acquired infections

Clinical Oncology

  • Deaths from cancers which are usually successfully treated
  • Major complications
  • Deaths within a short time after treatment

Laboratory Medicine

  • False negative cytology/histology

Obstetrics

  • Apgar score 3 or less at five minutes
  • Maternal complication after normal delivery
  • Maternal readmission within 14 days of delivery
  • Third-degree laceration
  • Haemorrhage requiring transfusion
  • Newborn injury
  • Neonatal convulsion within 48 hours
  • Stillbirth or death

Gynaecology

  • Return to theatre within 24 hours
  • Urinary tract injury
  • Bowel injury
  • Perforated uterus at suction termination
  • Post-operative deep-vein thrombosis
  • Wound breakdown

Radiology

  • Mis-reporting of films X-ray , CT, MRI and ultrasound imaging
  • Missed fractures
  • Complications of invasive procedures
  • Reactions to contrast media

Surgery and Related Specialties

  • Damage to adjacent structures
  • Deaths during or shortly after surgery
  • Subsequent admissions to intensive care
  • Unplanned second operations
  • Unplanned readmissions
  • Complications following joint replacement