12th National Biomedical and Clinical Engineering Conference

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12th National Biomedical and Clinical Engineering
Conference

• Litigation and the Biomedical Engineer

JOHN MEAD
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The NHS Litigation Authority (1)

• Special Health Authority
• Formed in 1995
• Covers England only
• Arrangements for rest of UK

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The NHS Litigation Authority (2)

• Administers schemes on behalf of Secretary of
  State for Health
• Not an insurance company
• Clinical (ELS CNST)
• Non-Clinical (RPST PES)

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NHS Indemnity

• Introduced in 1990
• Covers UK
• NHS staff benefit from this regarding claims
  arising out of and in the course of their
  employment
• No cover for frolics.

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Types of Liability

• Negligence
• Nuisance
• Breach of statutory duty
• Vicarious
• Strict

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Litigation in Practice (1)

• NHS cases will be against the employer, due to
  NHS indemnity
• Private cases will usually be against the
  individual
• Products claims will always involve the
  organisation, unless item made personally and
  privately

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Litigation in Practice (2)

• Consumer Protection Act, 1987
• Data Protection Act, 1998
• Human Rights Act, 1998
• Health and Safety at Work etc. Act, 1974

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Litigation in Practice (3)

• Importance of good records
• Training
• Adherence to guidelines
• Risk versus affordability

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Statistics (1)

• Numbers of new Clinical Negligence claims
• received by NHSLA
• 2005/6 5,697
• 2006/7 5,426
• 2007/8 5,470

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Statistics (2)

• Payments on Clinical Negligence cases by
• NHSLA
• 2005/6 560.3M
• 2006/7 579.4M
• 2007/8 633.3M

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Selected Cases

• Yearworth Others v N Bristol NHS Trust Loss
  of sperm (Bristol County Court, 12/3/08)
• Blockages to anaesthetic tubing
• Farraj v Kings Healthcare NHS Trust and
  Cytogenetic DNA Services Ltd Laboratory owes
  duty to parents (High Court, 26/5/06 Swift J)