NHS trust paid out £24.4m in last year alone
Posted: 9th February 2014
Posted in: Birth Injury Head and Brain Injuries Medical Negligence NHS Claims
Oxfordshire’s hospital trust has paid out more than any other hospital authority due to ‘mistakes and blunders’ in 2013. Figures have revealed that the trust has seen a surge in cases, having risen by 1,000 percent in less than a decade. When figures were first published in 2003/04, Oxfordshire paid out £2.3m to claimants, which has risen to almost £25m in 2013. Figures have shown that Oxfordshire has paid out £113.7m to claimants in the last 10 years.
Where the number of claims being awarded has increased, so has the amount of compensation being issued. A great number of the major claims made are related to injuries that require lifelong care, such as children who have suffered brain damage as a result of birthing mistakes. An increase in the number of claims is equally responsible, however, with 2003/04 seeing 15 claims, and last year seeing a total of 84 claims. Oxford East Labour MP Andrew Smith has described the recent surge in claims as a “national phenomenon”.
‘Not a reflection of quality or safety’
Mr Smith said: “Whilst it is right that the victims of negligence have proper compensation, we have to be careful that this rising tide of claims doesn’t cross the line into penalising clinicians who are undertaking the more complex procedures with some inherent risk of going wrong.”
Trust medical director Professor Edward Baker said that the increase in claims is not a reflection of the quality or safety of the trust’s services.
If you have been affected by medical negligence, and are looking to claim compensation, please contact us.
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