Jeremy Hunt says NHS doctors and nurses must apologise for care failings

Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, says that doctors and nurses must ‘say sorry’ when things go wrong to end the ‘culture of defensiveness’ which developed under Labour.

Once again we are seeing various stories appearing in both the Nationals and regional papers urging our medical profession to be “more open when mistakes are made”. Often as lawyers we are barraged for costing the NHS valuable money by pursuing claims and yet if this era of openness was genuinely embraced then claims would be dealt with so much more efficiently and effectively.

If you have been the victim of Clinical negligence , yes of course you want an apology but to be honest for some of our clients it is an acknowledgment that their concerns are being listened to and where possible addressed.

A very important part of our role as Clinical negligence lawyers is not only to highlight the failings but to work with the NHS to address the problems and try and rectify the situation for the patient where possible.

We don’t just raise a claim and leave it at that we assist in rehabilitation and future treatment if necessary. So yes, we agree there does need to be more openness when mistakes happen and instead of the defensive wall we so often see, a more conciliatory approach would reduce the expenses currently wasted on needless litigation.

Contact us now at Thorneycroft Solicitors if you feel you or someone you know may have been a victim of clinical negligence whether it’s by a hospital practitioner, NHS or private care service. Call us now on 0800 1979 345 as you may be entitled to clinical negligence compensation.