Blog
14 Maternity Trusts to be Scrutinised as Part of National Investigation
Kirsty Allen
17 July 2015
Birth injury series - caesarean section
Families affected by a birth injury are often reluctant to pursue a claim against the NHS or private hospital involved with their child’s birth. They may be distraught and finding it difficult to come to terms with the devastating news that their child has a catastrophic brain injury.
The focus of this blog is caesaren section and is the sixth and final blog in our birth injury series.
This blog first appeared in At Home Magazine.
6 July 2015
The end of the duty of candour double standard?
When things go wrong in healthcare, should the duty of candour owed by providers to patients differ depending on whether the care was provided within a primary or secondary setting? Or whether the patient received care from the public or private sector? A single duty of candour should apply consistently across the healthcare service. Unfortunately, the duty of candour is currently triggered by two different thresholds depending upon who provides care to the patient.
17 June 2015
Birth injuries series - Fetal distress
Some birth injuries can be anticipated and with prompt and appropriate action serious injuries can sometimes be avoided. If a birth injury is sustained through lack of appropriate care it may be possible to make a clinical negligence claim for compensation.
The focus of this blog is fetal distress and it is the second in our series of six birth injury blogs.
This article first appeared in At Home Magazine.
15 June 2015
The doctor will see you now – will better access to GPs improve patient care?
Isn’t it hard to get an appointment with your GP these days? The anecdotal consensus is that it’s harder than it used to be. A two or three week wait is not unheard of.
David Cameron has recently announced that he wants GPs to open for up to 12 hours every day by 2020 with the ostensible aim of relieving pressure on hospitals and giving working people access to a doctor at weekends. To show he is serious, the Prime Minister has offered to provide additional funding (£400 million over the next five years) to ensure that as many surgeries as possible open from 8am to 8pm.
20 May 2015
Treating with dignity
No-one could fail to be moved by the accounts given in “Dying Without Dignity” the report on the end of life care just published by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. It is a sad reflection of the very patchy nature of the NHS. In some cases, it seems, end of life care epitomises the dehumanisation of health care. The emphasis on process rather than compassion is very clear from the case studies. In one of them, Mrs N is quoted and her complaint is familiar.