The Personal Injury Awards, hosted by Claims Media, was held virtually on Tuesday 1st December and was hosted by Matthew Maxwell Scott, executive director at the Association of Consumer Support Organisations and the chair of the independent judging panel.
Inevitably, the NHS has had many difficult decisions to make since COVID 19 sent us into national lockdown. These difficult decisions continue as the country remains in such uncertain times. With the winter months just around the corner and the new lockdown tiers implemented the ongoing disruption to our access to healthcare looks to continue.
We are delighted to have achieved another year of great rankings in the Legal 500.
This year we’ve ranked in eight practice areas across our Business and Personal services (including Corporate and Commercial, Commercial Litigation, Employment, Commercial Property, Family, Contentious Probate, Personal Tax, Trusts and Probate and Clinical Negligence and Personal Injury: Claimant) and 20 solicitors have been recommended for their work.
It has been reported that at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, NHS managers and GP’s requested care homes place a blanket ‘Do not resuscitate’ (DNR) order on all their residents in order to keep hospital beds free.
The journal Lancet Oncology last week predicted that delays in treatment since Covid in March could lead to 3,500 avoidable cancer deaths in England in the next five years. Mary Smith, an expert in clinical negligence claims based in Bristol, stated that the NHS was struggling to meet service demand before the pandemic took place with a waiting list amounting to 4 million.
In an attempt to encourage positive behaviours in clinical negligence litigation, NHS Resolution, the Society of Clinical Injury Lawyers and patient safety charity Action against Medical Accidents have all collaborated on the Covid-19 Clinical Negligence Protocol 2020.
Following on from the 2019/20 annual report from NHS Resolution, which covers up to 31 March, we have seen Claimant legal costs for clinical negligence cases rise by 12.5% over the last year. But these have also risen for Defendants. This rise is partially down to newly recognised GP indemnity arrangements but also an increase in interim payments.
At a time when lockdown is over and restrictions are relaxing we now ask, what is the impact of this pandemic on clinical negligence claims across England and Wales? A QC Mr Nigel Poole has voiced his opinion on this matter and suggested that ‘context is all’ for example our present context will be of great significance when the Courts weigh up whether a Trust or Professional has acted negligently during the pandemic.
A police inquiry has been launched at Shrewsbury & Telford Trust following what has been coined the UK’s ‘worst baby ward scandal’. Detectives are investigating 1,250 cases dating back to the 1970s, as dozens of newborns unnecessarily died or suffered brain damage.
In the unprecedented times in which we find ourselves we must spare a thought for those residing and working in residential care.
The COVID-19 outbreak has raised numerous challenges globally, leading to countless difficult decisions being made that affect us all.
World Parkinson’s Day 2020 falls on the 11th April 2020 and this year the focus is all about getting to know people with Parkinson’s and the people in their lives.
Mike Walsh, Shoulder surgeon at Spire Healthcare Leeds remains under investigation following suspension in April 2018.
Almost 3 years after surgeon Ian Paterson was convicted for 17 counts of wounding with intent and 3 counts of unlawful wounding and imprisoned, the “Paterson Inquiry report” was released on the 4th February 2020.
Last week was #ChildMentalHealthWeek, a week which aims to remove the stigma surrounding children’s mental health by creating more awareness.
Further to our December blog on ‘the largest maternity scandal in the NHS’ in relation to Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, it is reported that the NHS are still continually failing patients through their maternity service. Not only this, but they are colluding in the prevention of justice for those families at the hands of the negligent treatment.
Rehabilitation is increasingly being accessed by those who have unfortunately suffered personal injury in an accident. Natalie Marrison, Partner looks at how it can be better incorporated into clinical negligence claims.
In what has been coined the ‘largest maternity scandal in the NHS’, a leaked internal report in relation to Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust has highlighted continuous clinical malpractice between the years of 1979 and 2017.
In the recent case of CXB -v-North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, [2019] EWHC 2053 (QB), the Court found that clinical records should not necessarily be preferred over witness evidence, however did ultimately find that in this particular case, there was not sufficient material to find that the clinical record was unreliable or incorrect.
Natalie Marrison from our personal injury department discusses the importance of rehabilitation during a personal injury claim, in allowing the claimant to return to as close to their pre-accident lifestyle as possible.
The NHS Representatives have recently published a report – “Behavioural Insights into Patient Motivation to Make a Claim for Clinical Negligence” which produced data in relation to claims pursued between October 2016 and September 2017.
Ramsdens Solicitors are pleased to confirm that they will be supporting Headway throughout their Action for Brain Injury Awareness Week taking place in the week commencing 20th May 2019.
An inquiry is now underway into contaminated blood which was spread through blood transfusions in the 1970s and 1980s.
It has recently been reported by the BBC that a Criminal Investigation has been commenced arising out of a significant amount of deaths at Gosport War Memorial Hospital.
Figures have recently been released by the charity, Inquest, showing a huge disparity between funding for the state and individual families to attend inquests.
In the news recently has been a case relating to a 74 year old man who has lost his eyesight as a result of an inadequate A&E attendance.
Inquests are fact finding hearings. The aim is for the coroner to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of an individual and is limited to answering four key questions, who, when, where and how did an individual come to their death. It can often be a daunting experience for the families involved, especially if you are asked to give a statement regarding the circumstances and are called to give oral evidence.
Our Clinical Negligence team hosted their inaugural conference in Leeds on the 29th January 2019.
The tragedy continues in the review ordered by the government of Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust.
Patient safety concerns forced the health secretary to put the hospital trust into special measures. This Trust is no longer trusted to run itself and is now being overseen by NHS Improvement. It is reportedly the first time a Trust has been placed in this position without a recommendation from the care Quality commission first of all.
A landmark ruling in the case of Darnley V Croydon Health Services NHS Trust has been made in the Supreme Court.
The case involved Mr Darnley, who attended at A&E following a head injury. Mr Darnley was advised by the reception staff that the wait would be five hours and as a result decided to return home.
