We can help you claim
compensation following an accident
illness or injury - nationwide
Call: 0800 10 757 95
At some point in our lives all of us will experience some kind of health problem, even health professionals. However, for doctors, nurses or surgeons who deal with patients experiencing fragile health the need to ensure they don't transmit an infection, disease or virus will be of particular importance, particularly as such transmission may sometimes be considered to constitute clinical negligence.
Naturally, thorough hand hygiene will always be the first insurance against a health professional transmitting illness to a patient. However, in the event that a health professional suffers from a serious illness such as HIV, it will be necessary for him or her to take added precautions.
The reality though is that unless the professional works in a capacity that demands he or she performs invasive procedures, HIV will, depending on the occupational setting, usually change little about the way a health professional works.
This is because the rate of doctor to patient transmission of the virus is very low. In fact, the risk of such transmission has been described as "infinitesimal", something that is backed up by a report by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC report states: "Transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) from an infected healthcare worker to patients is rare. The results of this investigation add to previously published data indicating a low risk for provider-to-patient HIV transmission."
Yet it is not unheard of. For example, in 1997 a woman in France discovered that she had been infected with HIV after being operated on by an orthopaedic and trauma specialist who suffered a wound to his finger while performing an invasive procedure on the woman.
And, although the French patient succeeded in making a claim for clinical negligence damages, the mere fact of having been operated on by an HIV-infected health worker does not, on its own, constitute grounds for receiving injury compensation. This became clear after an HIV-negative woman in the UK tried to make a medical negligence claim for "psychiatric shock" after discovering that her gynaecologist had died of an Aids-related illness.
Claiming compensation with leading clinical negligence solicitors
Healthcare professionals owe their patients a duty of care; if you believe that duty of care may have been breached and that you have suffered injury or illness as a result, it may be possible to mount a successful claim for damages.
We at YouClaim specialize in this form of litigation. All our medical negligence specialists are drawn from firms governed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, while many also possess membership of the Clinical Negligence Accreditation scheme.
Unfortunately, the complexity of this type of litigation precludes us from offering a completely cost free service. However, we do strive to keep costs to an absolute minimum and reimburse them in the event of the case being won.
We do not take a cut, ensuring all clients receive 100 percent of the compensation awarded.
To find out more about how we can help you, echat, leave your details in an online claim form or call us now, on 0800 10 757 95.
