How Can I Begin Legal Proceedings for Medical Negligence?

Cases of Medical Negligence (or Clinical Negligence) are on the rise. This is because the medical profession is developing so quickly that sometimes risks and problems arise more frequently. Medical definitions are also becoming more complicated which sometimes makes it difficult for the general public to understand. Medical negligence cases can often lead to large compensation sums being paid out to the claimant.

An area that has seen major progress in recent years is that of organ donors. This can be a particularly sensitive area for grieving relatives whereby retention of organs and tissues following a post mortem takes place for use in operations on others.

Litigation in this area has increased due to the bigger demand for organ donors and replacement organs to save lives. It is the advice of a specialist medical negligence solicitor that you will need.

Similarly, there are other more modern areas of medicine where a clinical negligence lawyer is the person best suited for comment on your particular grievance if this applies to you. These include acquiring an infection whilst in hospital, that was due to poor hygiene. Hospitals which do not maintain the highest standards of hygiene often suffer from outbursts of the MRSA virus. An early failure of hip replacement is also under closer scrutiny. Other more recent areas subject to clinical negligence are breast screening and cervical smear testing which have been subjected to misinterpretation, and the use of dirty or unsterilised medical instruments.

One of the difficulties in determining medical negligence as a case for a lawsuit is that it can overlap with safety. This could apply in a situation where a doctor or nurse administers an injection to a patient which has a contra-indication that was not found before hand.

If any one of these areas applies to a complaint you have or on behalf of a family member then seek proper legal advice from a qualified, experienced and specialist medical negligence lawyer. This trained professional will go through your case in detail and discover the underlying medical facts surrounding your situation. This may take many months of careful handling by other professionals too, with in-depth study of medical records and the procedures adopted at the time.

A clinical negligence lawyer is highly trained in this field to ascertain certain elements of proof on negligence in a duty of care - and argue on your behalf taking it to court if required.