No Win No Fee Medical Negligence Claims

In most medical negligence cases you can claim for free and keep all of your compensation and pay nothing if you win or lose.

UK Medical Negligence Claim Specialists

We have specialist Medical Negligence Claim Solicitors ready and waiting to help you across the UK.

Not Sure What To Do?

Simply call us or complete the quick enquiry on the right and let us explain your legal rights and your options (at no cost to you and no obligation).

Are medical dramas influencing decisions to sue for medical negligence?

An increase in the number of compensation claims made against the NHS is being blamed on ‘The Holby Effect’. The annual conference of the Royal College of Nurses has heard how TV programmes such as ‘Holby City’ are fuelling the compensation culture in the NHS by painting an unrealistic picture of what to expect from medical staff.

Figures released by the NHS show that for the year 2008 - 2009 there were 6,080 claims made for clinical negligence and 3,743 made for non-clinical negligence. These claims came at a cost of £807 million in compensation payouts to claimants. By comparison, in the year 2007 - 2008, the number of claims made was about 10% less, with payouts totalling £661 million.

John Hill from Scunthorpe told the conference that the public’s expectations of healthcare professionals are too high and this is partly due to TV medical dramas. He said, “In A&E it is sometimes a fact that sadly you cannot get people through the trauma they have received. Unfortunately, unlike Holby City, I'm a mere mortal, I cannot perform miracles but many relatives believe because of that that you can. And injury lawyers assure them that if you don't they will be able to get some recompense for it."

The Holby Effect

The ‘Holby Effect’ could also be having further repercussions within the NHS. As medical professionals are becoming more concerned over the possibility of a claim being made against them, they are spending more and more time on paperwork and administrative tasks and consequently less time is spent dealing directly with patients. Marcia Turnham, a delegate from Cambridgeshire, told the RCN conference in Bournemouth that nurses had to spend “more time recording care than giving care”, and the compensation culture meant staff felt as though they were “under the microscope”. She said, “From a nursing point of view, I think one of the main concerns is that there's too much documentation associated with the care we have to give. A big part of that is those documents associated with indemnity insurance for the trust. Every time a patient is admitted it can take a nurse 40 minutes to fill in the paperwork. That's time that a nurse could be spending with the patient.” Another factor was also raised as Marcia said the rise of the Internet had led more patients and relatives to seek information about their conditions. This had further raised expectations and pointed to the growth in the number of lawyers seeking compensation for NHS patients.

The underlying feeling seems to be that medical healthcare professionals feel that patients and relatives are too quick to turn to litigation when their expectations of the health service are not met. In turn, this can only serve to make things more difficult for those with genuine clinical negligence grievances. As the number of claims escalate, healthcare lawyers will be forced to scrutinise each claim made and, if they feel it is appropriate, challenge them. In addition, the time that is spent on paperwork could also lead to further claims as medical staff become preoccupied with preventing litigation, rather than with treating the matter in hand.

Back to Medical Negligence Articles

FREE GUIDE - 7 Questions You Must Ask Before Choosing Your Medical Negligence Solicitor

If you believe you have been the victim of an act of medical or clinical negligence you need our free guide which answers all of the questions that you need answers to before deciding to make a claim, including:

• What are the costs of making a claim for compensation
• The reasons you should or should not make a claim, including protecting other patients
• Whether using a solicitor or a claims company will make a difference to the success of your claim
• The questions you must ask to ensure you choose the right person to help you with your claim

Before you take any further action, take five minutes to read our free guide so that when you do pick up the telephone or fill in an online enquiry form, you know exactly the questions you need to ask to find the right medical negligence claim solicitor for you.

Share This Article With:

• Tweet This
• Delicious
• Digg
• reddit
• Facebook
• StumbleUpon

If you would like 1stClaims’ expert Medical Negligence Solicitors on your side please call us free on 0800 2888 693 or complete our Free Claim Enquiry form now and we will be in touch with you very soon.

Remember, all initial enquiries are completely free of charge and we will investigate all funding options for you.

We are here to help you from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday,
8.30am to 6pm on Saturday and 9am to 6pm on Sundays.

1stClaims is regulated by the Ministry of Justice in respect of regulated claims management activities: Number CRM15909. This registration is recorded on the website www.claimsregulation.gov.uk

“We comply, where applicable, with the SRA Code of Conduct 2011 published by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, and any solicitor [or registered European lawyer] to whom we may refer you is an independent professional from whom you will receive impartial and confidential advice. You are free to choose another solicitor [or registered European lawyer]"

1stClaims Limited - Registered in England and Wales - Reg. Co. No. 06566866. Registered Office Address: First Floor Offices, 119 Station Road, Nailsea, Bristol BS48 1TA - VAT Reg. No. 938 1976 76