Medical Negligence Solicitors Bury St Edmunds- No Win No Fee

Medical negligence, also known as clinical negligence, happens when a healthcare professional fails to meet the expected standard of care, which can lead to harm, injury, or death to a patient. This can occur when a healthcare provider deviates from the accepted norms and standards of medical practice, resulting in substandard or inadequate treatment.

At Beacon Law, our personal injury solicitors believe that individuals who have been victims of clinical negligence deserve support and maximum compensation for the pain and suffering they have endured. Compensation can help cover the costs of future treatments or medical care, easing the financial burden caused by the resulting pain and loss of earnings.

If you have been injured due to medical negligence and suffered as a result, our team of medical negligence solicitors in Bury St Edmunds are here to assist you. To discuss your medical negligence claim, please contact us today and get the guidance you need.

Examples of Medical Negligence

Clinical negligence can manifest in various ways, as medical practitioners can make errors or exhibit negligence in different aspects of patient care. There are several types of medical negligence, which include:

• Misdiagnosis: When a medical professional fails to accurately diagnose a patient’s condition, resulting in incorrect or delayed treatment. For example, if a heart attack is mistaken for indigestion and antacids are prescribed instead of immediate cardiac care, a misdiagnosis claim may be warranted.
• Surgical Errors: Occurring during surgical procedures, these are preventable mistakes made by surgeons. They can involve operating on the wrong body part, leaving surgical instruments inside the patient’s body, or damaging surrounding tissues or organs. Surgical negligence errors can occur in emergency surgery, elective cosmetic surgery, and even dental procedures.
• Medication Errors: This category encompasses various mistakes, such as prescribing the wrong medication, administering an incorrect dosage, or failing to consider potential drug interactions or allergies. An example would be a nurse administering the wrong medication due to confusion with similar-looking packages.
• Birth Injury: Negligence during childbirth can lead to harm to both the mother and the baby. This may involve the failure to monitor fetal distress, improper use of delivery instruments resulting in long-term brain injury or trauma, or delayed response to complications.
• Anesthesia Mistakes: Errors in administering anaesthesia can have serious consequences. Examples include administering an incorrect dosage, failing to monitor vital signs during the procedure, or not considering the patient’s medical history when determining the appropriate anaesthesia.

What is the process of making a claim?

At Beacon Law, our dedicated team of expert clinical negligence solicitors, Bury St Edmunds, will evaluate the merits of your case, discuss the potential for making a claim for compensation, and guide you through the process with expert legal advice.

Our specialist medical negligence solicitors will conduct a thorough investigation into your case. This may involve gathering relevant medical records regarding your negligent medical treatment, obtaining expert opinions, and reviewing the circumstances surrounding the alleged negligence.

If we determine that your case has merit, we will send a formal letter of claim to the healthcare provider or institution responsible for your negligence. This letter outlines the allegations, the harm suffered, and the compensation being sought.

Independent medical experts will be consulted to assess the standard of care provided by the healthcare professional involved. They will review the case and provide expert opinions on whether there was a breach of duty of care that resulted in harm or injury.

Once all necessary evidence has been collected, negotiations will take place between us and the defendant. The goal is to reach a fair settlement that compensates you for the harm and losses you have suffered. Many medical negligence claims are resolved through negotiated settlements without the need for court proceedings.

How much compensation could you be entitled to?

Compensation amounts for medical negligence injuries can be hard to predict as every case, and every injury are different. Our expert medical negligence solicitors, Bury St Edmunds, can only provide you with a rough guide, though generally, the more severe an injury, the higher the amount of compensation awarded.

The amount of compensation you could be entitled to for medical negligence can vary greatly depending on the specific circumstances of your case. Compensation in medical negligence cases is typically determined by assessing various factors, including:

• Pain and suffering: Compensation may be awarded for physical and emotional pain, trauma, and loss of enjoyment of life resulting from the negligence.
• Medical expenses: This includes costs incurred for medical treatments, surgeries, medications, rehabilitation, and ongoing care related to the negligence.
• Loss of earnings: If the negligence has caused you to miss work or has affected your ability to work in the future, you may be entitled to claim compensation for the income you have lost or will lose as a result.
• Future care and assistance: If the negligence has resulted in a long-term or permanent disability requiring ongoing care and travel expenses, compensation may be awarded to cover these future costs.
• Adaptations and equipment: If your living arrangements or the need for special equipment or adaptations to your home or vehicle arise due to the negligence, compensation may be provided for these expenses.

Our specialist medical negligence lawyers in Bury St Edmunds can also advocate on our client’s behalf for interim compensation payments to cover any additional expenses they incur as a result of their injuries during the claims process itself.

What are the time limits for making a claim?

In the UK, there is a time limit for making a medical negligence claim. This is known as the limitation period. The limitation period for medical negligence claims is three years. This means that you must start your claim within three years of the date of the negligence or three years from the date you first became aware of the negligence.

There are some exceptions to the three-year limitation period. For example, if the claimant is a child, the limitation period does not start until the child turns 18. If the claimant is mentally incapable of bringing a claim, the limitation period does not begin until the claimant regains mental capacity.

Our personal injury lawyers can discuss the specific limitation periods to your case during your initial consultation.

How can Beacon Law assist?

Our team of solicitors in the Bury St Edmunds area, can assist with a wide variety medical negligence compensation claims, using their knowledge and expertise to obtain the best settlements for our clients.

We offer our personal injury claims services on a conditional fee agreement (no win, no fee agreement), meaning you don’t have to worry about the costs of making a claim and won’t be required to pay any fees unless your case is successful, in which case we take a success fee. Please have a look at the funding section on our website for more information regarding our no win, no fee claim fees.

To make a claim for medical negligence compensation with Beacon Law, or if you have further queries, please get in touch with our law firm to discuss your medical negligence case on 0330 1332 857. For claims involving other legal areas, such as commercial law or family law, you can use the Find a Solicitor tool on the law society website.