Clinical Negligence

It was perhaps only natural that, having successfully established the process of Independent Evaluation (IE) for personal injury claims, we were asked to establish a process for clinical negligence claims. IE enables patients, families and the bereaved to achieve the best possible outcome in weeks instead of years. IE is known for its professionalism, efficiency and rigour, but it also puts the patient at the heart of the process, and is infinitely kinder to all involved than the adversarial court process.

Whilst recognition, an apology and compensation are often the three key objectives for the claimant, clinical negligence claims are not all about money. There is frequently an ongoing therapeutic relationship that should be protected and a mutual desire to see an early, cost effective and amicable resolution of differences in the interests of the patient, the provider and other patients who depend on the provider’s resources. At IE, we provide the means by which parties can get past the first hurdle and make high quality decisions that ultimately enable both the resolution of the claim and the future working relationship.

IE provides highly specialised clinical negligence Evaluators, who have enormous experience and expertise in the full range of disputes arising from all the main medical specialities including:

  • delayed birth and other brain injury cases (hypoxia causing cerebral palsy)
  • shoulder dystocia
  • delayed diagnosis of cancer
  • delayed or misdiagnosis of cauda equina syndrome
  • delayed diagnosis of meningitis
  • lack of informed consent to treatment
  • poorly performed surgery including cosmetic surgery
  • mis-prescription of medication
  • misdiagnosis of scoliosi
  • fatal accident claims arising from medical negligence, including secondary victim claims for relatives in hospital deaths.

Each of our Evaluators has been involved in clinical negligence cases for many years, dealing with numerous cases right the way through contested trials and appeals. They are recommended by the directories or otherwise renowned as leaders in this field, due to their huge experience in assessing and valuing these cases. Their ability to predict the correct outcome at trial is second to none. This means they are well placed to facilitate Independent Evaluations for clinical negligence disputes, to the satisfaction of all those involved.

Disputes relating to Intensive Care and Best Interests

There are certain types of dispute, relating to the proposed treatment of critically or terminally ill patients, that present particular difficulties for dispute resolution: Best Interests and Intensive Care (ICU) disputes. In response to this, we have created a bespoke model of evaluation by adapting the IE process to provide the best possible chance of resolution. For Best Interests and Intensive Care disputes, we are continuing to develop a unique process that brings in a top tier clinical specialist with expertise in the ICU arena or other specialist field alongside the Evaluator. In this way, IE provides the parties with truly independent legal and medical expertise. For more on this please see Best Interests and Intensive Care disputes.

What to do next

If you are involved in a clinical negligence dispute, whether you are the patient, a relative of the patient, the solicitor representing the patient/relative, or a solicitor representing NHSR or an NHS Trust, please contact us at Independent Evaluation. We would like to provide you with the best chance of allowing all parties to move forward from the optimal resolution of your dispute.

For more information or to refer your dispute for Evaluation, please call Jonathan Bishop on 020 3383 1000 or complete our enquiry form.