Negligence Flashcards
What is clinical negligence?
Healthcare professional breeching his duty of care.
Duty of care is to exercise reasonable skill and care in diagnosis, treatment and provision of healthcare information
How would a doctor be proved to be negligent?
The doctor owed the patient a duty of care
The doctor failed to give an appropriate standard of care
But for the failure of care, the harm would not have occurred and the harm is reasonably foreseeable
Must be within 3 yrs of the date of harm
What is meant by therapeutic privilege?
The withholding information by the clinician during the consent process in the belief that disclosure of this information would lead to the harm or suffering of the patient
What is whistleblowing?
The term applied to a situation where an employee, former employee or member of an organisation raises concerns to people who have the power to take corrective action
Should be promoted and encouraged in healthcare, esp if patient safety/wellbeing is at risk
As an FY1, who should you raise concerns with about a fellow doctor’s action?
Your consultant/clinical supervisor
More senior colleagues may need to be discussed with the medical director/clinical governance lead
What should be done if you make a mistake in patient care?
There is a professional duty to be transparent and truthful with patients if things go wrong
Put matters right? Offer an apology? Give a full explanation of what occurred
What are the National Patient Safety Agency’s classifications of harm?
No harm: near miss
Low harm: pt requires minor treatment
Moderate harm: Mod increase in treatment, significant but not permanent harm. Eg unplanned return to surgery/ unplanned readmission to hospital/prolonged episode of care
Severe harm: A permanent lessening of bodily, sensory, motor, physiologic or intellectual functions, including removal of the wrong limb/organ or brain damage that is related directly to the incident
Death: Directly results from incident
Where are patients encouraged to complain?
At a local level to the practice manager of a GP surgery or Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) within a hospital
What is done if a local investigation does not satisfy the complaint of a patient?
To ask the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman to open an investigation (an independent organisation)
If professional misconduct, contact GMC/GNC
Or solicitor
What happens if you receive a complaint?
Seek advice from their consultant/practice complaints lead
Receipt of complaint should be acknowledged within 48hrs
Respond with details of what happened, invite patient to a face-to-face discussion
Apologise
MDU for advice/review of written responses/legal and emotional support
