The way in which GPs (doctors) in the UK are insured against potential clinical or medical negligence claims changes from today (1st April 2019). GPs no longer have to pay for their own insurance cover every year; instead this will be backed by the UK government. Not everything is covered by the new scheme. Whether your GP is covered for any particular issue depends on what has happened.
For free legal advice get in touch with our Medical Negligence Solicitors.
In most situations, your GP will be covered for a medical negligence claim. The new state-backed scheme applies to all NHS negligence claims where the treatment occurred after 1st April 2019. This will work in a similar way to how cases against NHS hospitals have been managed.
That said, the new scheme doesn’t insure GPs if they do private-paying clinical work or provide treatment as a ‘good Samaritan’. In these cases (and for other types of work outside of front-line treatment), GPs still need to take out separate insurance. However, they don’t usually result in medical negligence claims.
The short answer is ‘yes’. If we put aside some of the more technical issues (which don’t directly affect patients making medical negligence claims), then the advantages are:
The new scheme is a positive development for patients and also helps to reduce the cost of obtaining insurance for doctors. Patients can now be more confident that their GP will have comprehensive insurance cover if things go wrong with their NHS treatment.
If you’re dissatisfied with your NHS treatment, the first step is to talk to your GP (doctor). They will have an internal complaints process (under the NHS’s Duty of Candour). If you’re unhappy with the way in which the investigation has been conducted, you can ask the Parliamentary and Health Services Ombudsman to investigate that.
In some cases, it’s appropriate to make a claim for compensation to help you live with the effects of negligent clinical or medical treatment.
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