NHS considering proposals to curb compensation costs
Medical negligence compensation costs for the NHS are rising on a yearly basis prompting the government to consider serous proposals to curb the rising costs.
According to The Guardian, the cost of settling legal claims against the NHS for clinical negligence rose to £807m last year. This is staggering rise of £146m on the previous year.
The newspaper also reports that the number of claims increased from 5,354 to 5,955.
The chief onus of the proposed changes rests on the point which requires the NHS to declare when staff mistakes cause injury or death in the patients.
The Department of Health is considering imposing a legally binding "duty of candour" on hospitals, surgeries and other healthcare providers. This will make sure that patients are admitted by the NHS managers when an error has led to harm.
The health minister has said that “a culture of openness and transparency is vital when things go wrong in the provision of care."
The proposal also includes a point that expects the service to explain exactly what has gone wrong and apologise.
The chief executive of the group said that as hard as it was, admitting errors was "the only thing to do ethically, morally and professionally".
Updated on 28/09/2009