Medical and Dental Negligence

If you have been injured due to Medical Negligence or Dental Negligence our experienced, committed and specialist Medical Negligence solicitors at Brophy Solicitors will work with you to establish if you have a case related the medical error or dental error. We have over 30 years cumulative experience in advising clients in matters relating to medical negligence.

Whatever your motivation, we have a clear understanding of your needs, and we are confident that our experienced and dedicated team of medical negligence lawyers will be able to offer you comfort and legal support through these often difficult times. We recognise that a medical accident has significant emotional and financial consequences for you and your family and we will do everything we can to make the process run as smoothly for you.

The following are amongst the areas of medical negligence and dental negligence that we advise upon:-

Medical Negligence Cerebral Palsy & Birth Injury Claims

• Acquired Brain Injury Claims
• Oncology & Cancer Claims
• Gynaecological & Obstetric Injury Claims
• GP Claims
• Dental Injury Claims
• Eye related claims
• Hospital Acquired Infection claims - MRSA
• Fatal Injuries
• Inquests
• Defective Medical Products
• PIP Implants
• DePuy Hip Replacements ASR
• Cosmetic Surgery Claims
• Psychiatric/psychological Injuries
• General Medical Problems

 

PROVING MEDICAL/DENTAL NEGLIGENCE

Proving that a medical/dental practitioner has acted negligently in his or her treatment of a patient is a rather complex task and it should be noted that the law only offers the opportunity for a victim to recover compensation if it can be demonstrated “on the balance of probabilities” that the treatment received was carried out in a negligent fashion by the healthcare professionals involved and that this directly caused or contributed to your injury.

What exactly constitutes medical negligence is now always clear. However, there are a number of circumstances in which it can be clearly argued that a medical professional has breached his or her duty of care. These include:-

• Erroneously or belatedly diagnosing illness or injury
• Failure to take action following test results
• Mistake in performance of an operation or procedure 
• Error in administration of medication
• Sub-standard follow up care

 

 

Failure to advise a patient of the risks associated with procedures prior to their administration. I order to prove that a doctor/dentist is negligent, it is necessary to establish that no reasonably competent practitioner in the relevant field, at the relevant time, with the same qualifications and expertise, faced with the same circumstances, would have acted in the same way. Therefore, even where the treatment administered has caused or contributed to the injury, same may not be deemed negligent if it can be demonstrated that it was the “reasonable” action of a competent medical/dental professional given the circumstances.

 

WHAT ACTION CAN I TAKE IF I SUSPECT I HAVE BEEN INJURED BY NEGLIGENT TREATMENT

The very least you can expect is a full explanation as to how the injury occurred and an apology where appropriate, and an assurance that all steps will be taken to investigate your complaint. It may also be entitled to compensation by taking legal action.

As stated above, in order for you to be successful in your legal claim, there are two strands of the case that need to be proven on the balance of probabilities:-

• Negligence – that the care you received fell below medically acceptable standards; and
• Causation - that the breach of duty or negligence of the clinician/medical attendant directly resulted in an injury to you.

As part of the initial investigation, we will require a supportive opinion from a suitably qualified independent medical expert. They will base their opinion on

• Your medical records
• Your account of what happened to you
• Any other documents supporting your case.

Without a supportive report from an independent expert, your case will not succeed.

Because of the complicated nature of these claims, it may take some months to obtain an expert report and these can usually only be obtained after we have obtained your medical records. Claims are not required to be submitted to the Injuries Board (formerly known as the Personal Injuries Assessment Board).

STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS/TIME LIMITS IN MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE

Normally the date of knowledge will be the date on which the injury was sustained. It is therefore essential that an injured party seeks legal advice as soon as possible following an incident or medical malpractice. The reality is that, except for a small number of specific exceptions, the opportunity to make a claim for compensation will be lost exactly two years after the date of knowledge. Exceptions do, however, exist particularly with respect to cases of medical malpractice such as an illness that went unchecked due to misdiagnosis because the date of knowledge may at times be difficult to clarify. In such circumstances, you should always seek legal advice at the first opportunity, even if it seems that it is too late as an exception may apply.

INJURIES TO INFANTS & MINORS

In the case of medical negligence/malpractice involving a child, it is important to note that the date of knowledge of the injury is actually the victim’s eighteenth birthday. i.e. time does not begin to run against the injured party until he or she attains the age of majority (eighteen years of age). Thereafter, under current law, the injured party has a period of two years within which to issue proceedings in court. A child victim can however pursue a medical negligence compensation claim before his or her eighteenth birthday provided a parent or guardian acts as his or her “next friend”.