Hospital’s heart rate drops after 200 claims could be filed
Stafford hospitals could be in very bad health this month, as it has emerged that 200 compensation claims may be filed against the service.
The legal action is thought to be coming from patients, families and loved ones affected by medical negligence, after it was alleged that poor care standards were at the hospital.
Last March, a report by the Healthcare Commission exposed a string of failings at the trust. At the end of last month, an inquiry based on evidence from more than 900 patients and relatives revealed patients were routinely ignored by uncaring staff.
The deadline for accident claim plaintiffs to contact ‘Cure the NHS’ has been set for the end of March as the injury lawyers helping the claimants prepare to make a group case.
The solicitors have said that they are representing more than 75 families and individuals and are fighting for a judicial review to get a public inquiry.
The firm has set a deadline of March 31st, so new people can get in touch about care worries and issues before February 28t, but claims after February 28th can still be made.
It has also been suggested by a hospital report that an additional 30 claims for personal injury are expected within the next few weeks. If that wasn’t enough to get the trust’s blood pressure pumping, a further 115 claims are being brought by other solicitor companies.
The cases are mainly for breaches of patient’s human rights, as many victims suffered from a clinical blunder. However, Emma Jones, from the lawyer firm fronting the campaign, noted that it wasn’t about the money, instead many families were more interested in getting an apology and acceptance of public liability.
Emma Jones said the basis of the human rights breaches amounted to the fact the care provided in some instances was so “degrading and inhumane” that it breached the right to be free from torture.
If the NHS accepts responsibility in most cases it could see hundreds of thousands of pounds paid out in compensation and possibly more than £1 million.
Ms Jones added: “In relation to action against a hospital in a poor medical setting, this is probably the largest case we have had. We want to form a group made up of individual claims so that we can start to move everything forward en masse.”
A catalogue of disasters
For a while now the hospital has had a notorious reputation for inadequate patient care. Some examples include one pensioner who was given food containing gluten while she was being treated at the hospital, despite her having an intolerance.
An inquest into the 78-year-old's death also heard of other problems during her stay. The patient, who suffered from Clostridium Difficile at the hospital, died on February 13 last year from bacterial peritonitis. Her daughters stated that they witnessed an array of errors at the service but had yet to decide whether to put in a claim.
Julie Bailey, from Milford, who formed Cure The NHS, did so following the death of her 86-year-old mother.
She commented on the number of claims: “I am not in the least surprised at the amount of people who could put in claims. It just shows the extremity of the harm they were doing over the years.”
Updated on 3/16/2010