GP Negligence Claims

GP Negligence Claims

Your GP is the first port of call when you have a concern about your health. But with GP negligence claims, you may experience a let down. While you don’t expect your GP to be able to resolve every illness they see in a ten-minute session, they should know enough to be able to refer a patient to a specialist for further assessment or treatment when necessary. There are times, however, when GPs make mistakes which can have grave consequences for those in their care.

What is GP Negligence?

Negligence occurs when your GP either misdiagnoses your condition or does not make a referral which could lead to the correct diagnosis. It can include:

• Prescription errors – giving a patient an incorrect dose or prescribing medication with an ingredient they have a known allergy to.
• Not completing their notes correctly (e.g., not recording the family history of a condition, or allergy information) which can affect their standard of care at a later time.
• Mistakes when reading test results.
• Not referring a patient for further tests or scans when symptoms indicate it is required.
• Carrying out procedures they are not qualified to do.

An example of GP negligence occurred when a patient visited their doctor about a mole that hand changed in colour and shape. The GP advised it was a wart and removed it in his surgery. The GP did not send the skin for analysis, even when the mole grew back. The patient revisited the GP and had the mole cut out again. However, a year later when the patient developed a painful lump under his arm and visited another GP, he was sent for tests which identified malignant melanoma which had spread to his lymph nodes.

It was fortunate the patient in the above scenario survived his negligent treatment. As a result of the GP’s negligence in sending the original tissue sample for analysis, the patient’s prognosis was poor, the treatment he required was more invasive, and his recovery much slower, than it should have been.

How Can We Help?

The Medical Negligence Experts work with a team of lawyers experienced in obtaining compensation for clients who suffer a personal injury due to clinical negligence. It is our job to ascertain firstly whether your claim is valid and, if so, negotiate for the best outcome on your behalf. It is not enough to simply prove you suffered negligent care. For a claim to be successful, you must show that the negligence contributed to your injury or ill-health.

Working together, we will compile this evidence and submit it to your care provider with the instruction they admit liability and compensate you appropriately. Compensation payments can include amounts to cover income lost through an additional surgery or extended recuperation time, as well as any extra care or treatment you have needed as a result of negligent care.

Find out more by making a free, no-obligation enquiry to The Medical Negligence Experts. Whether you are claiming for yourself or on behalf of a relative there are legally defined time limits for submitting an application for compensation, so contact us today.