If you have suffered complications because of necrotising fasciitis, can you pursue a claim against the NHS?
Medical negligence claims
If you or your loved one has suffered injury because of medical negligence, you will be legally entitled to sue the NHS. This is known as making a clinical negligence (or medical negligence) claim.
To make a successful medical negligence claim, you must be able to prove two things:-
- That the medical practitioners treating you breached their duty of care. This may either be your GP and/or an NHS Trust;
- That this breach of duty caused an injury that could otherwise have been prevented.
If both these factors can be established, it will be possible to pursue a claim for compensation. This applies to all area of medicine, including claims relating to necrotising fasciitis.
Necrotising fasciitis medical negligence
Therefore just because someone has contracted necrotising fasciitis does not necessarily mean that there are grounds for a claim.
However, there may be a case if a patient develops necrotising fasciitis because of the negligent actions of medical practitioners. For example, if a patient is not given preventative antibiotics before surgery (and there is a clinical need to do so) and he/she goes on to necrotising fasciitis, there will be a case of negligence.
In short, it must be possible to prove that medical practitioners provided an unacceptable standard of care, and this in turn caused a patient to suffer harm. There are various ways in which a necrotising fasciitis might arise, with some of the most common including:-
- A delayed diagnosis of necrotising fasciitis which leads to a significant defect/amputation
- A delay in providing emergency treatment following a diagnosis
- A patient develops necrotising fasciitis because prophylactic antibiotics are not given before surgery
- A patient develops necrotising fasciitis because of unsanitary conditions
- A patient develops necrotising fasciitis because another health condition remains undiagnosed/untreated – for example, an abscess and pressure sores can lead to infection if not treated
Can I claim compensation for necrotising fasciitis?
To find out if you can claim compensation for necrotising fasciitis, it is best to speak to a solicitor who specialises in this area of the law.
Clinical negligence can be complicated and it is not always easy to understand if you are entitled to pursue legal action – especially as medical practitioners rarely admit liability. A solicitor will be able to explain what options are available to you, suggesting whether or not you can claim compensation for necrotising fasciitis.
To speak to a solicitor, please get in touch with us today.
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