Accident and Emergency
This is often the first point of contact a patient will have with the NHS due to an illness or after an injury. The staff who practise in emergency medicine have skills in prevention, diagnosis and management.
Case reports
T -v- Calderdale & Huddersfield NHS Trust
The Claimant was taken to the Accident & Emergency Department at Calderdale Royal Infirmary after being knocked down by a car
and was diagnosed as having an unstable short spiral fracture of the right femur. Her leg was placed in a splint which had to be re-applied because it was the wrong size. She was admitted to the children’s ward of the hospital. She remained in hospital but there was a failure to monitor the healing process of her leg in the splint, to the extent that poor union of the femur was achieved and her leg was bent when the bone was healed and had a boney protruberance. The bowing of the leg also entailed shortening of the femur and consequently the leg itself.
The case settled for £28,000.00 which included damages for care provided to the Claimant by her parents, the cost of some reconstructive surgery on her scarring and damages for her psychological distress, as well as for the leg injuries overall and for the otherwise would have been unnecessary.
NHS to simplify complaints system
Wednesday, 22 April 2009 00:00 | 
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From 1 April, 2009 the NHS switched from a 3-tier complaints system to a 2-tier system. The aim is to simplify the complaints system in general. The Healthcare Commission ceases to exist leaving just local resolution and the HSO (Health & Safety Ombudsman).
This system now covers all complaints regarding healthcare. If a person is not satisfied with the local response they are entitled to have the matter reviewed by the HSO. On 28 November, 2008 the HSE published the Principles of Good Complaint Handling which suggests how the NHS should address complaints when there has been possible hospital negligence. The six objectives of handling complaints are (1) getting it right, (2) Being customer focused, (3) Being open and accountable, (4) Seeking continuous improvement, (5) Putting things right, and (6) Acting fairly and proportionately. To see the full report click here.
Notes
John Pickering and Partners LLP
About Us
Our clients are people who have suffered injury as a result of a medical accident in the UK. We are clinical and medical negligence solicitors. We handle negligence claims against hospitals, GP’s and other medical practitioners for clients across the UK.
We try to obtain maximum amounts of compensation.
We are committed to providing public funding (previously known as Legal Aid) and have a franchise from the Community Legal Services Commission. This means that they have looked at the firm carefully and approved of the way we work. They consider that we are medical negligence claims specialists. They trust us to handle medical accident claims properly.
If you are not eligible for public funding, we can offer a Conditional Fee Agreement, also known as a ‘no win, no fee’ agreement with insurance. We shall check the best method of funding your claim.
All 3 of our offices (Liverpool, Manchester and Halifax) are accredited by the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers.
Claire Horton is an experienced clinical negligence solicitor. She continues to practice as an independent funding ajudicator for the Legal Services Commission and acts on a pro-bona basis for the AvMA helpline.
We provide free initial advice to people seeking information about a potential clinical negligence claim.
If you need advice about a clinical negligence claim, contact us now for information about making a claim for compensation.