GP Negligence Claims
Your General Practitioner (GP) is often the first healthcare professional you visit when you require medical help. We expect our GP or other healthcare providers we visit to diagnose conditions and treat symptoms of an injury or illness. Sometimes, however, a GP can make a mistake, which could mean severe consequences for you. GP negligence claims can follow when people suffer an injury or illness due to negligent behaviour by their General Practitioner.
In this guide, we look into the different ways that GP negligence can be identified. We’ll also explain how we could help you claim compensation if you’re unfortunate enough to suffer from this type of negligence.
Select a Section
- A Guide To GP Negligence Claims
- What Is GP Negligence?
- GP Negligence Examples
- Misdiagnosis Claims
- Prescription Error Claims
- Negligent Medical Advice
- Clinical Negligence Compensation Calculator
- Special Damages In No Win No Fee GP Negligence Claims
- Am I Eligible To Make A No Win No Fee Medical Negligence Claim?
A Guide To GP Negligence Claims
Negligent behaviour by a GP can potentially cause a lot of physical and mental harm to a patient. That’s why it’s worth considering a GP negligence claim if you are affected by this issue. Read on to learn more about the different types of GP negligence that can occur. We’ll also talk about the ways GP negligence compensation can be calculated. We’ll also advise on how you can determine if you’re eligible to start a claim and how we can assist with your potential case.
What Is GP Negligence?
A personal injury claim could potentially be started for GP negligence if a General Practitioner provides treatment to a patient which is substandard and causes the patient to suffer injuries and illnesses. Like other medical professionals, GPs owe a duty of care towards all the patients which they talk to and treat. GP negligence can come in numerous forms, but what they all have in common is that they represent a breach in duty of care.
GP Negligence Examples
A General Practitioner may be consulted for all kinds of different conditions. They will usually try to diagnose the issue which a visiting patient has and from that point, certain actions may follow. The GP may provide treatment and/or advice, prescribe certain medications or refer the patient to an appropriate specialist. Unfortunately, certain mistakes may be made during these steps which could ultimately lead to GP negligence claims.
Misdiagnosis Claims
A General Practitioner could fail in their duty of care by misdiagnosing a condition which a patient has. The GP may either mistake the condition which a patient has for a different one or fail to diagnose an issue thoroughly (known as a missed diagnosis). A knock-on effect can be that a condition which a patient has is diagnosed late. It could mean that the patient suffered from symptoms of a condition longer than they needed to. The condition may have even become worse because of the delay in diagnosing and treating it correctly.
A misdiagnosis can have serious, harmful ramifications for a patient, particularly if they have a severe condition like cancer or sepsis.
Prescription Error Claims
A GP may prescribe medication while taking care of a patient. However, a potential error could occur where the wrong medication is prescribed by the GP or it’s prescribed at a dosage level which is too high for the patient. This could mean the patient suffers avoidable side effects. Also, their condition may not improve or it could even become worse if they are given the wrong medication.
Negligent Medical Advice
Another way a GP may breach their duty of care is if they give medical advice to a patient which is inadequate. For instance, a GP may misinterpret the symptoms a patient is experiencing or they could underestimate how severe the health issue is. As a result, a GP may unfortunately end up providing advice to a patient which does little to nothing to help their condition. On a similar note, a GP may fail to refer a patient to the appropriate specialist, depending on what exact condition they may have at the time.
Clinical Negligence Compensation Calculator
How much compensation you could receive for a GP negligence claim depends on several factors. These include what injuries or illnesses you’ve suffered as a result of negligence and how severe these conditions are.
The table below includes estimated payouts that may be given for a GP negligence claim depending on certain types of injuries you may have. The payments listed may be offered under ‘general damages’, which covers compensation for all injuries and illnesses suffered due to negligence by the defendant. The estimated payments in the table are based on figures provided by the Judicial College Guidelines. During a claim, solicitors may use these guideline figures in order to calculate the value of your injuries.
Special Damages In No Win No Fee GP Negligence Claims
As well as receiving compensation for ‘general damages’, you may also be compensated for ‘special damages’. Money for special damages covers financial losses which can be directly linked to the negligence and injuries which your claim centers on. So if, for example, injuries caused by GP negligence have led you to take unpaid time off work, you could be compensated for these loss of earnings. Other financial losses such as the costs of certain treatments could also be covered by your compensation under special damages.
Am I Eligible To Make A No Win No Fee Medical Negligence Claim?
If you have good reason to believe that you’ve been harmed due to negligent behaviour by a GP, then you could be entitled to make a personal injury claim. To have a realistic chance of succeeding with your claim, you will need to prove a few key points with evidence:
- You’ve received care from your GP.
- The GP breached their duty of care towards you while you were in their care.
- The negligent behaviour from the GP directly caused injuries and/or illnesses which you are claiming for.
As well as establishing these points, you also need to make sure you start your claim in time. Under the Limitation Act 1980, a personal injury claim needs to be started within three years of when you suffered your injury or illness due to negligence.
If you are eligible to start a GP negligence claim, then you may be able to claim under a No Win No Fee basis. If you contact a solicitor to help with your claim, they may offer to support your case under a No Win No Fee agreement. This type of arrangement can provide several financial benefits, including the following:
- You won’t be required to pay fees upfront at the start of your claim.
- No legal fees should need to be paid while your claim is being processed.
- If your claim is not successful, you will not be required to pay your solicitor’s fees. This should provide you with confidence that your solicitor will work hard on your case, since they face extra risk.
If your No Win No Fee claim is successful, then your solicitor will usually take a small percentage of your compensation as payment. Keep in mind that a solicitor is only likely to offer you a No Win No Fee agreement if they are confident your case is likely to succeed.
