When medical negligence occurs, the patient is owed monetary compensation. However, before this is awarded, the following three factors must be demonstrated:
- Medical / clinical negligence
- Causation (i.e., a link between the negligence and the resulting complications)
- Damages
The answer—as you might have guessed—is complicated. This is the territory of solicitors. They examine the case and come up with a figure that is based upon their own calculations and (perhaps more importantly) prior precedent. If courts have awarded a certain amount in the past for a similar case, then there’s reason to expect that a similar amount could be awarded again.
Of course, the defendant’s solicitors are aware of precedent as well. They also know that the number of medical negligence claims in the UK have risen by 80% since 2008. If this is a clear-cut case of medical negligence, then they’ll probably push to settle out of court—perhaps for slightly less than precedent dictates. If the defendant accepts, compensation changes hands and the case is settled without the rigmarole of a drawn-out court case.
Calculating medical negligence compensation
So let’s move on to the calculation. A typical medical negligence suit will take the following two types of damages into account to calculate the amount of compensation owed:
General damages
Operating Theatre (PD)General damages are the most tangible damages in a medical negligence case, but they’re also the most difficult to attach a price tag to. What is the market value of a limb? How much is a person’s wellbeing really worth? We’re naturally reluctant to set a price on an individual’s life or health—it seems petty. However, this is precisely what needs to happen if compensation is going to be determined.
Suffice it to say, the general damages calculated in a medical negligence suit are going to depend on the severity of the injury that was sustained as a result of the malpractice as well as the pain that accompanies it. In so many words, the general damages reflect the pain and suffering that the patient endured.
As mentioned earlier, the amount of compensation likely to be awarded depends to a large extent on legal precedent. If you would like an approximation of roughly how much you could expect to be awarded, the best thing you can do is review previous cases that are similar to your own. This is, at least, where your solicitor will begin. However, if they feel that there are extenuating circumstances or further complications in your case, then they may well push for a higher figure.
Special damages
The word ‘special’ brings the abstract to mind, and many people understandably assume that special damages are more difficult to nail down and calculate. As it turns out, the opposite is the case, and special damages (which are sometimes referred to as economic damages) can be calculated with relative ease.
This is the economic damages that the person endured as a result of the injury. Any extra money that they were forced to spend as a result of the clinical negligence is lumped into this category. With that in mind, special damages can include the following:
- Earnings lost because the person could not work during their extended recovery period.
- Potential earnings lost because the person is no longer capable of carrying out their former occupation.
- Travel expenses incurred travelling because of the injury or malpractice (e.g., travel to another hospital).
If you can prove that medical negligence did occur, then you may well be entitled to compensation for damages as outlined above. However, as you can see, coming up with an exact figure is beyond complicated. That’s why it’s important to contact a solicitor that specialises in medical negligence cases as early in the process as possible.
This article is courtesy of Olivia Brean, writing on a freelance basis for Mintons UK, a law firm whose first priority is to ensure that clients understand how the law works and what they can expect when they look to make clinical negligence claims.
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