Have you suffered an illness or injury in a hospital that could have been avoided and you are wondering how you could prove hospital negligence in order to make a medical negligence claim? As well as providing information on gathering evidence to support a claim against a negligent hospital, there’s also a section on what hospital negligence could look like, as well as one on how compensation is calculated for instances of medical negligence.
You can get in touch with our advisors at any time, as we’re available on a 24/7 basis. As well as answering any questions you may have about how to prove a hospital negligence claim, they can also inform you of the benefits of working with one of our expert No Win No Fee solicitors.
A Guide On How To Prove A Hospital Negligence Claim
Call for a free consultation now. There is no obligation to make a claim after you receive a free assessment of your case.
- Phone 0800 652 3087
- Complete the claim online form
- Connect with an advisor today using the chat in the corner of the screen.
Browse Our Guide
- How To Prove A Hospital Negligence Claim
- What Evidence Could Help Prove Your Hospital Negligence Claim?
- Examples Of Hospital Negligence
- Estimated Payouts For Hospital Negligence
- How To Make A No Win No Fee Hospital Negligence Claim
- Find Out More About How To Prove Your Hospital Negligence Case
How To Prove A Hospital Negligence Claim
Hospital negligence falls under the broader category of medical negligence. As well as having an understanding of how to prove hospital negligence, it’s also important to know if you have a valid medical negligence claim in the first place. Being aware of a medical professional’s duty of care is vital to this.
All medical professionals owe you a duty of care. This means that the care with which they provide you must meet a certain standard. If they provide you with a poor level of care, then the duty is said to have been breached.
With this in mind, let’s explore the criteria that a valid medical negligence claim must meet:
- Duty of care – You need to have been owed this duty.
- Breach of duty – A medical professional needs to have breached their duty of care.
- Harm caused – The breach needs to have resulted in you experiencing harm that could have been otherwise avoided if not for the medical professional’s negligence.
How Long Do You Have To Claim?
There is also a time limit to consider when claiming against a negligent hospital. Generally, this is 3-years, as stated in the Limitation Act 1980. You must begin legal proceedings within this timeframe. However, there are exceptions in the Act too.
Get in touch with our advisors today to find out if you’re still within your limitation period in which you could begin your claim for negligence in a hospital.
What Evidence Could Help Prove Your Hospital Negligence Claim?
There are various forms of evidence you could gather to prove a medical negligence claim. In this section, we’ve provided a few examples. However, the list below is not exhaustive, and other forms of evidence may be available to you.
- Witness contact information – There may have been a loved one with you during a consultation or when you were treated. Pass on their details to your solicitor, who can then approach them for a written statement.
- Medical evidence – You should receive a discharge letter when you leave the hospital. You should also explore acquiring your medical records.
- A written diary – Keep an account of everything that happened to you and any symptoms you experienced due to the harm caused by a medical professional’s negligence.
- Independent medical assessment – This is carried out as part of the claims process. The report that’s generated can be presented as evidence.
A Bolam Test can also be requested for claims such as these. This is when a panel of medical professionals is assembled and asked to consider whether what you experienced would fall under the category of medical negligence.
Get in touch today if you want to know more about how to prove hospital negligence.
Examples Of Hospital Negligence
Negligent hospital care could cause various forms of harm that could have been avoided. We’ve provided a few examples in the list below.
- Negligent Misdiagnosis – For instance, a cancer misdiagnosis could cause the condition to become worse due to a lack of appropriate treatment.
- Wrong site surgery – You could undergo an operation on the wrong part of your body. This can be especially severe if, for example, the wrong limb is amputated.
- Bed sores – You could develop these if the correct equipment and techniques are not used during your care.
- Birth injuries – Mistakes could be made during childbirth, with injuries to the mother and the child both possible.
- Organ damage – For example, you may have been prescribed medication that you did not need. Damage to the liver and kidneys is possible, along with other organs.
- X-Ray Negligence – A medical professional may misread an X-Ray. This could lead to a misdiagnosis or the missed diagnosis of a fracture or other injury.
There are other ways that hospital negligence could impact your health. Reach out to our advisors today to find out if what you experienced could fall under the same category and how you can prove hospital negligence.
Estimated Payouts For Hospital Negligence
As well as wondering how to prove hospital negligence, you may also want to know how compensation is calculated. Each case is valued individually. Additionally, each can be comprised of two heads of claim called general damages and special damages.
General damages account for the pain and suffering caused by a breach of a medical professional’s duty of care. Those responsible for making the necessary calculations do so by addressing various resources. One of these is a publication called the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG).
The figures below have been taken from the latest edition of the JCG, which contains guideline compensation bracket amounts. The value of your own claim will differ, so the guideline brackets in this table should only ever be used as guidance.
| Harm Caused To | How Severe | Comments and Explanations | Guidance Brackets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amputation of Arms | Loss of Both Arms | The complete loss of both of the claimant's arms. | £240,790 to £300,000 |
| Loss of One Arm (i) | When one arm is amputated at the shoulder. | Not less than £137,160 | |
| Leg | Amputation (i) | Both legs have been lost, one of which will have been lost above the knee. | £240,790 to £282,010 |
| Amputations (iii) | One leg has been amputated above the knee. | £104,830 to £137,470 | |
| Kidney | Serious | Both kidneys have been either lost or seriously damaged. | £169,400 to £210,400 |
| Loss of One Kidney | Although one kidney has been lost, the other has not been damaged at all. | £30,770 to £44,880 | |
| Bladder | Loss of Function | Complete loss of control and function. | Up to £140,660 |
| Elbow | Severe | A disabling injury. | £39,170 to £54,830 |
| Spleen | Loss of Spleen | An ongoing infection risk due to damage to the immune system caused by the loss of the organ. | £20,800 to £26,290 |
| Male reproduuctive system | Cases of Orchidectomy | When psychological consequences are brought on by an orchidectomy. There will be no loss sexual function or impotence. | £20,070 to £22,580 |
Claimable Expenses
Special damages are the second head of claim that you could be eligible to receive. Under this head of loss, compensation looks to compensate for losses, costs, and expenditures that occur because of the impact on your health caused by medical negligence.
Here are some examples of what special damages could address:
- Loss of earnings – You may miss time at work during your recovery period. This could mean your earnings are disrupted.
- Medical expenses – For example, prescription medication. This could also include some private healthcare if the treatment was not available for free on the NHS.
- Walking aids – Walking sticks or Zimmer frames, for example.
- Prosthetic limbs – You may require one if an arm or leg is removed when it should not have been or could have been avoided.
- Travel costs – You may need to use public transport or taxis to travel to appointments.
You will need to prove that hospital negligence caused these losses. You can do so by gathering and presenting evidence, such as payslips, receipts, and other documentation.
How To Make A No Win No Fee Hospital Negligence Claim
Working with one of our solicitors means there’ll be a form of No Win No Fee arrangement in place known as a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This means you’ll have full access to your solicitor’s legal services, all without paying them anything upfront. In the event of a successful claim, they take a success fee from your compensation. The percentage that the solicitor can take for this fee has a legislative cap and cannot exceed the maximum percentage.
Our solicitors can also answer any questions you may have throughout your claim and lend hands-on assistance when gathering evidence to help you prove hospital negligence.
Talk To Our Team About Your Case
Get in touch today to find out more about how to prove hospital negligence and whether you could be eligible to make a claim. As well as offering free advice, we can also provide you with a bespoke valuation regarding how much you could be awarded if your claim succeeds.
Call for a free consultation now. There is no obligation to make a claim after you receive a free assessment of your case.
- Phone 0800 652 3087
- Complete the claim online form
- Connect with an advisor today using the chat in the corner of the screen.
Find Out More About How To Prove Your Hospital Negligence Case
Follow the links below to find additional resources that we hope you also find useful.
More from us:
- Read the answers to some of our medical negligence FAQs. We’re often asked similar questions, so you may find what you’re looking for.
- We’ve also written a guide on anaesthesia compensation claims. Find out if you could be owed compensation for negligence in instances such as these.
- Claiming for epidural negligence is also a possibility.
Information from other sources:
- If you want to know about the Pre-Action Protocol for the Resolution of Clinical Disputes, head to this Government source.
- You can read about about appointing a litigation friend to claim on someone else’s behalf on the Government website too.
- There are scenarios known as never events, which can often lead to claims.