How To Make A Complaint About A Wrong Medication Error And Claim Compensation
Do you want to find out how to make a complaint about a wrong medication error? This guide will aim to provide advice and guidance on the process of complaining about this kind of error.
How to make a complaint about a wrong medication error
Furthermore, this guide will touch on the process of making a medication error compensation claim and the eligibility criteria for doing so. We’ll also address factors such as the proof you could provide in support of a potential claim and how legal professionals arrive at settlements.
You can also find out about the benefits of working with a No Win No Fee solicitor. So, if you want to know more about any of these subjects, read on. You can also get in touch with us if you have any questions. There are a few ways you can do this:
- Call on 0800 073 8804
- Discuss your claim online
- Use the pop-up chat window
Browse Our Guide
- How To Make A Complaint About A Wrong Medication Error
- Can I Take Legal Action Against A Negligent Healthcare Professional?
- Examples Of Wrong Medication Errors That You Could Claim Compensation For
- Compensation Payouts For Wrong Medication Negligence Errors
- Claim For A Wrong Medication Error On A No Win No Fee Basis
- Find Out How To Make A Complaint A Wrong Medication Error
How To Make A Complaint About A Wrong Medication Error
If you’re wondering how to make a complaint about a wrong medication error, then you might find this section useful. The body that you make a complaint to may differ depending on the institution where you experienced the medication error. Initially, you may find it beneficial to complain to the institution directly, for example, the GP surgery or hospital where the error occurred.
Below are some examples of bodies to whom you could submit a complaint about a medication error:
- The General Medical Council (GMC) regulates doctors in the UK. They can perform investigations into concerns about the care a doctor has provided.
- Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. If a complaint to the NHS in England or to another UK public organisation has been left without a resolution, then a final decision could be made by them.
- NHS Resolution. This body provides the NHS with expertise on resolving disputes and complaints fairly.
- Care Quality Commission is the independent regulatory body for health and adult social care services. While they cannot raise complaints on behalf of members of the public, they can utilise the information they’re given to prevent these issues from being repeated.
- General Pharmaceutical Council regulates British pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and pharmacies. Their aim is to improve the standard of care for those who use these services.
Get Help Making A Complaint About Negligent Healthcare
Get in touch with our advisors today if you need help making a complaint about a medication error. We can give you information on what details to include when you make your complaint and to who the complaint should be raised.
Additionally, our advisors are able to assess whether you could have a valid medical negligence claim. Speak with an advisor using the details at the top of this page.
Can I Take Legal Action Against A Negligent Healthcare Professional?
Now we’ve explained how to make a complaint about a wrong medication error, we’re going to examine how to make a medical negligence claim. While filing a complaint with your healthcare provider can be a useful means of resolving an issue, it is not required in order to make a claim.
Every medical professional, regardless of their position, years of experience or whether they work in public or private healthcare, has a duty of care to provide their patients with medical care that meets the correct standard. Failing to meet this standard can lead to patients experiencing avoidable harm.
We have summarised the eligibility criteria to begin a medical negligence claim following a medication error here:
- You were owed a duty of care by a medical professional.
- That medical professional breached this duty by failing to provide the correct standard of care.
- You experienced avoidable harm as a result of this breach.
Avoidable harm refers to any harm that would not have occurred had the correct standard of care been met. A few potential examples of this have been given in the section below. To learn more about how to complain about a medication error or for a free assessment of your eligibility to claim, get in touch with our advisors today.
How Long Do I Have To Claim For Being Given The Wrong Medication?
You generally have 3 years from the date you suffered harm to begin a medical negligence claim. However, in cases such as medication errors, the harm may not immediately manifest. Due to this, you could use the date of knowledge as the start date of this limitation period.
The date of knowledge is the date you knew or would have been expected to realise, that medical negligence was the cause of the avoidable harm you experienced. Exceptions can apply to this three-year time limit, however. Get in touch with our advisors
Examples Of Wrong Medication Errors That You Could Claim Compensation For
You may be wondering how a medication error could happen. We’ve included some types of medication errors in the list below, but this isn’t exhaustive:
- Wrong medication prescribed – You could be prescribed the wrong medication for the condition you have. For instance, you may be prescribed an antidepressant, but receive a completely different medicine instead. This might happen because of a misdiagnosis or a prescription error. This could leave your original condition to worsen without treatment. Furthermore, taking a drug you do not need could harm you.
- Wrong dosage – Even if you are prescribed the correct medication, the dosage could be incorrect. If the dosage is too low, then your condition may not be treated. If the dosage is too high, you could experience an overdose that makes you ill.
- Allergic reaction – If you have a known allergy to a certain medication, but a doctor does not check your records before prescribing it to you, you could suffer an allergic reaction as a result.
Get in touch today if you were prescribed the wrong medication by a healthcare professional and want to know if you can claim. Our advisors can also offer guidance on how to make a complaint for a wrong medication error.
Compensation Payouts For Wrong Medication Negligence Errors
Compensation for clinical negligence claims is calculated on a case-by-case basis. The settlement you receive will take into account the pain and suffering caused by medical negligence through a head of claim called general damages.
Legal professionals use resources such as medical evidence and a publication called the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to help them value this head of claim.
The JCG is comprised of guideline brackets. We’ve included some figures from the latest edition in the table below. The first entry is not a JCG figure.
Compensation Table
We would like to emphasise that each claim is assessed individually, and therefore, this information is intended to act as guidance only.
| Injury | Description | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Kidney | (a) Both are lost or permanently damaged. | £206,730 to £256,780 |
| Kidney | (c) One kidney lost, but the other is undamaged. | Up to £78,080 |
| Bladder | (c) Some pain and incontinence and serious control impairment. | £78,080 to £97,540 |
| Bladder | (d) Some relatively long-term interference with natural function, but there will have been almost a complete recovery. | £28,570 to £38,210 |
| Digestive system | (i) Severe toxicosis that results in pain, diarrhoea and vomiting that necessitate hospital admission. There may be some continuing incontinence and bowel issues that significantly impacts quality of life. | £46,900 to £64,070 |
| Digestive system | (ii) Serious diarrhoea, and vomiting that is short lived and gets better within a period of 2 to 4 weeks. It will have some remaining impact in the form of ongoing discomfort and disturbed bowel function for a period of years. | £11,640 to £23,430 |
| Digestive system | Significant cramping, discomfort and altered bowel function. Hospital admission required for some days but complete recovery within 1-2 years. | £4,820 to £11,640 |
| Spleen | (a) The spleen is lost and there is an ongoing risk in internal infection caused by immune system damage. | £25,380 to £32,090 |
| Spleen | (b) Where the risk above is not present or, if it is, it's minimal. | £5,310 to £10,550 |
| Other Epileptic Conditions | (c) Where there are one or two episodes of epilepsy but there's no risk of further recurrence. | £12,990 to £32,090 |
Special Damages
The second potential head of claim is called special damages. You could be reimbursed for costs and losses caused by medical negligence. Examples include:
- Travel costs.
- Medical expenses.
- Additional care at home.
- Loss of earnings.
You will need to support a special damages claim with evidence such as receipts and payslips. Get in touch today to find out more.
Claim For A Wrong Medication Error On A No Win No Fee Basis
Our No Win No Fee solicitors could help you in the process of making a claim for the harm you’ve suffered due to a medication error. A No Win No Fee solicitor could operate under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This means you can access their legal services without having to pay upfront or ongoing fees. Instead, a No Win No Fee lawyer takes a success fee from your compensation if your claim succeeds.
The success fee is worked out as a percentage of your overall compensation that is legally capped to prevent overcharging. If your claim were to fail, then they would not take this success fee. Get in touch with our advisors today to find out whether you could work with one of our solicitors:
- Call on 0800 073 8804
- Discuss your claim online
- Use the pop-up chat window
Find Out How To Make A Complaint A Wrong Medication Error
We hope that this guide on how to make a complaint about a wrong medication error has been useful to you. We’ve included some links below that you may also find helpful.
More of our guides:
- Claiming for the harm caused by a medical drug error
- Claims for a birth injury
- Medical negligence claims for lack of consent
Information from other sources:
- What are litigation friends? – Government information on assigning someone to claim on behalf of someone else.
- Duties of a doctor registered with the General Medical Council
- Learning from medication errors – Information from the NHS.
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