An Examination Of Compensation Payouts Made By Ipswich Hospital To Patients
In this article, we are looking in some detail at both specific cases of Ipswich hospital compensation payouts, as well as looking at Ipswich hospital compensation amounts. We have included two different case studies, both of which were publicised in various press outlets. These case studies serve to illustrate some of the most dramatic circumstances in which medical negligence occurs, and generally include very high levels of compensation paid out.
When looking at hospital compensation claims for medical negligence it is worth remembering that such circumstances are exceptional. For most people a visit to the hospital, whether for a routine appointment or for emergency care, will be satisfactory experience. Most patients will receive excellent levels of care and instances of medical negligence by the NHS at any hospital will be rare. The medical professionals treating you will prioritise getting you the best and most appropriate medical care possible, helping you to make the best possible recovery.
However, whilst this is the experience for the majority of NHS patients, it is not exclusively so. Experiencing medical negligence, such as mistakes in your treatment which cause you harm, could have a life-changing effect on you. Your physical, emotional and even financial losses may not be fixable with a simple apology.
If errors are made in the provision of care by NHS staff, such as Ipswich hospital doctors, you could be able to claim compensation. In this guide, we shall look at some of the ways in which those harmful errors could happen and look at real-life cases where they harmed patients.
Choose A Section
- A guide to Ipswich Hospital medical negligence claims
- What Is Medical Negligence
- Ipswich Hospital Compensation Amounts Payouts
- Case study – £5m Compensation Payout For Birth Injuries At Ipswich Hospital
- £8 Million Hospital Compensation Payouts In 2013 / 2014
- How To Begin A Medical Negligence Claim Against Ipswich Hospital
- Our Local Medical Experts
- No Win No Fee Medical Negligence Claims Against Ipswich Hospital
- Contact Our Experts
- Resources
A guide to Ipswich Hospital medical negligence claims
On the 1st July 2018 the new East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust was created by the merger of Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust and the Colchester Hospital University NHS Foundation Trust. Before the merger, the Ipswich hospital provided care just to those living in and around the Ipswich area. Facilities at the hospital include an A&E department (open 24 hours) and other care facilities, such as those providing treatment to cancer patients.
As with many hospitals and other clinical facilities across the UK, various types of claims for medical negligence have been made against the hospital in the last few years. These range in severity but some of the most serious and publicly disclosed instances have involved negligent practices during the delivery of a baby which have led to cases of Erb’s Palsy and Cerebral Palsy.
Choosing A Solicitor To Help You Make An Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust Compensation Claim
If you have been harmed by hospital care you may need a medical negligence solicitor to help you claim compensation for your injuries or illness as well as the financial impact that this has had upon you. Here are some tips to help you find a solicitor able to conduct NHS medical negligence cases.
- Don’t just look at solicitors in your local area. The right person to handle your claim may be based in a different place.
- A solicitors experience could be more helpful to your claim than their location.
- Make sure they have a good track record.
- Look at reviews of different solicitors or law firms.
What Is Medical Negligence?
Whether you suffered medical negligence by the NHS or a private hospital, the same criteria apply for care to be considered negligent. In the simplest terms, clinical or medical negligence describes situations where medical professionals or providers such as Ipswich hospital departments, breach the duty of care which they legally owe to patients under their care.
The circumstances in which such negligence could occur, the ways in which a patient could be harmed and the harm caused. In reality, clinical negligence could include almost anything which led to a patient being avoidably harmed.
Hospital Negligence
Each and every hospital compensation claim could be different. This can make it difficult to fully define how, when and why you could make a claim against Ipswich hospital. NHS medical negligence complaints could include;
- Delays in diagnosis.
- Delays in surgical procedures.
- Negligence in A&E care.
- Wrong site surgeries.
- Giving the wrong medication.
- Injuries caused during childbirth.
- ENT negligence
In addition, harm could be caused by an error of omissions, such as not giving medication or other required forms of care. You can find out more about making an NHS medical negligence complaint about compensation in this article.
Ipswich Hospital Compensation Amounts Payouts
To help illustrate the frequency of Ipswich hospital compensation payouts as well as Ipswich hospital compensation amounts which have been paid out in a specific accounting year, we have included the following table.
To create this table we have used data collected by the body NHS Resolution. NHS medical negligence statistics and information is published on an annual basis by the body and relevant data can be found in the release titled ‘Factsheet 5’. Versions can be seen for the 2016/ 2017 period and the 2017/ 2018 period where you can find further information related to claims made against this hospital, the foundation trust which manages it and the local NHS Clinical Commissioning Group.
Accounting period | Damages paid | Name of hospital or NHS Trust | No. successful claims made against hospital/ trust |
---|---|---|---|
2017/18 | 3,636,775 | Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust (The) | 36 |
2016/17 | 535,083 | Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust (The) | 25 |
Now we have looked at the number and value of claims which have been brought successfully against this hospital, we shall look at two specific case studies. Through these, we can better illustrate the effects of medical negligence and see the value of two very high NHS compensation payouts at Ipswich hospital.
Case study – £5m Compensation Payout For Birth Injuries At Ipswich Hospital
The first case study we are looking at involves a child who was injured during childbirth and who was awarded a significant Ipswich compensation payout as a result of this. In this case study, the family of the injured child was awarded a compensation pay-out of several million pounds. This was both to compensate for the harm caused and the anticipated future care costs.
The child in question was delivered by staff at Ipswich Hospital in 2006. Due to delays in being correctly treated, the child was starved of oxygen for 30 minutes and suffered life-changingly severe brain injuries.
At the time of the claim, the child was seven years old and suffered from seizures as well as cerebral palsy. Additionally, he had problems with mobility and what have been described as significant learning disabilities. It is estimated that he will require assistive care throughout his life and would not be able to support himself through work. It was also remarked by medical negligence lawyers and solicitors representing the family that the child (identified as Joseph) is happy and fun loving.
Whilst many cases are settled without the need to go to court, this Ipswich hospital NHS trust compensation claim did progress to the courts. The case was heard at the London High Court. The Trust (at the time still the Ipswich NHS Hospital NHS Trust) made an unreserved apology for harm caused. The hospital was found to be negligent in this case. The child and family were awarded a reported £5 million in damages and compensation. This is one of the higher Ipswich hospital compensation payouts on record.
In response to the case, the family of the child commented that if their child had been delivered 30 minutes prior, the accident would not have happened and he would not have sustained his injuries. In addition to issuing an apology, the hospital’s representatives also stated they hoped the compensation would provide the family with some future security.
£8 Million Hospital Compensation Payouts In 2013 / 2014
Having highlighted a specific case study, we shall look at the wider picture of Ipswich hospital payouts which have been made to claimants in the last few years. We shall see that over the course of several years, the total amount Ipswich hospital pays in medical negligence compensation regularly exceeds several million pounds.
When the above figure of £8 million was made public by the NHS Litigation Authority the then (and current) MP for the area – Dan Poulter – who was also a health minister at the time, stated that his view was that improvements in both care and training would be a pivotal step in decreasing Ipswich compensation payouts. At the time of this report in 2015, the NHS Litigation Authority was the body responsible for such payments. This has subsequently been renamed as NHS Resolution.
The quoted figure of £8 million relates to payments made in that year, not necessarily made in response to incidents or claims made in that year. This figure also includes the cost of legal action. Figures from the NHSLA have also shown that in the year March 2012 – March 2013 a total of £6 million was paid out in costs and damages. This was a little below the figures for the accounting year 2011/ 2012. Here there was a total of £8 million paid between compensation and costs.
As has been highlighted by the case study above, the highest Ipswich hospital NHS trust compensation claims are thought to have been paid out to those harmed by negligent care during pregnancy or the birth of a child. Whilst there are medical negligence claims time limits to be aware of (which you can learn more about here) in the case of injuries caused by negligence in childbirth, claims may be made many years later when the full extent of injuries are diagnosed.
How To Begin A Medical Negligence Claim Against Ipswich Hospital
You could claim compensation for medical negligence which has been caused in a variety of different ways and with different outcomes. You could be awarded damages for your initial injury or illness, the cost of any necessary medical treatment or care, lost income or even the cost of adapting your home and/ or vehicle. You could also claim damages for the effect that the incident has had on your wider life. Find out more about how much your claim could be worth in our guide here. Our panel of medical negligence solicitors could handle a variety of different types of claims, some of which may be complex.
There are just a few simple steps which you could take in order to get your claim started.
- Get in contact with our team using the methods listed below.
- Discuss your claim with our team. We can assess whether we think you are eligible to claim compensation. If so, you could be assessed by a member of our panel of doctors close to your area.
- Be matched with a solicitor from our panel of experts.
To start your claim today, simply get the details of what has happened to you on hand and contact our specialist team.
Our Local Medical Experts
If you have been affected by negligent medical care at Ipswich hospital and wish to make a compensation claim against Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust, or the current health authority, you could do so with one of our panel of personal injury solicitors. An important part of the claims process is having your injuries or illness examined by an independent medical expert. This helps to both ensure that your injuries have been fully assessed and noted, that you are in receipt of the correct treatment, and finally that there is specific medical evidence which we can also use in your claim.
To this end, we work with a panel of doctors who could carry out your medical assessment in the local area. Members of our panel include:
Mallika Sahebagouda Biradar
Ipswich Clinic,
Aqua Pharmacy, 52 Duke Street,
Ipswich,
IP3 0AQ
Mahmoud Khalifeh Shoshtari
2 The Havens,
Ipswich,
IP3 9SJ
Kunal Rathod
Orwell 2 The Havens,
Ipswich,
IP3 9SJ
Please note. Your medical examination may be carried out by another doctor or at a different location to those listed above.
No Win No Fee Medical Negligence Claims Against Ipswich Hospital
When making a personal injury claim you could be concerned with facing a large legal bill to start the claims process. One of the most common funding options for personal injury claims is for the claimant and solicitor to enter into a no win no fee or conditional fee agreement. But what is a conditional fee agreement and how could it help you to fund your claim?
Conditional fee agreements mean that you do not need to worry about how you will fund or pay for your legal fees. Put simply, this means that if a solicitor agrees to handle your case, but is not successful in helping you to claim compensation, there will be no fees to pay them. It really is that simple and there are no catches.
Medical negligence Assist could offer claimants,
- A comprehensive no win no fee service.
- An examination by a doctor based in your area.
No win no fee medical negligence claims are designed to help those who may not otherwise be able to afford to claim compensation get access to legal representation and make a claim.
Contact Our Experts
If you or a loved one have been harmed due to negligent medical care received whilst being treated by Ipswich hospital you could be eligible to claim compensation. You could do so with one of our panel of specialist personal injury or medical negligence solicitors. Whilst we are not based in Ipswich, our team could help you to get the compensation you are owed.
Contact us today by phoning our team on 0800 652 3087. You could also start your claim online today by filling in our contact form, here. Or you could simply send a message using the contact form on this page.
Resources
In addition to the information and NHS medical negligence case studies presented above the following references and resources also contain valuable information about the services provided at this hospital. We have also included a reference to the Care Quality Commission (CQC) who inspect and review healthcare providers across England.
Ipswich Hospital
Learn more about medical services provided and facilities available at this hospital here
CQC Ratings For East Suffolk And North Essex NHS Foundation Trust
See the latest ratings, inspection reports and surveys for the ESNEFT here.
Complaints Against Ipswich Hospital
Details on how to register a complaint about the services provided by this hospital.