Compensation for injuries sustained due to clinical malpractice by a doctor, surgeon or health care worker is possible in Ireland provided that it can be proven that ‘on the balance of probabilities’ a competent medical professional could have treated you differently and your injuries could have been avoided. The following examples may appear to be clear cases of clinical malpractice; however a clinical malpractice solicitor should still be consulted for advice about making a claim for clinical malpractice compensation.
Clinical Malpractice and Unnecessary Surgery
Compensation for unnecessary surgery can be claimed whenever a patient has undergone a surgical procedure which was later discovered to be unnecessary. Claims for unnecessary surgery compensation can also be made when a doctor has recommended a surgical procedure without first exploring non-invasive procedures. Medical negligence solicitors should always be consulted for advice about claiming compensation for unnecessary surgery, even though this is usually a clear case of clinical malpractice.
Clinical Malpractice and Anaesthesia Errors
Claims for anaesthesia error can be made for anaesthesia dosage errors leading to anaesthesia awareness during an operation, a failure to recognise complications when a patient is under anaesthetic, failure to supply sufficient oxygen, delayed delivery of anaesthetic and the failure to monitor a patient’s vital signs during an operation. If you or a loved one has suffered health problems due to an anaesthesia error, you should seek the advice of a clinical malpractice solicitor about making a claim for clinical malpractice compensation.
Negligence in Patient Follow Up
A doctor has a duty of care to a patient which involves the diagnosis and treatment of health problems; however patient follow up also comes under the same duty of care. Negligence in patient follow up can have serious implications to the health of a patient, especially when long term treatment programmes are ineffective and are not properly followed up. A doctor must conduct regular follow ups to ensure that a treatment plan is effective. Although a patient would be expected to make an appointment with a doctor if a treatment plan does not appear to be working, or if any adverse side effects are experienced, negligence in patient follow up could see the doctor liable for any health problems which result. Claims for clinical malpractice due to negligence in patient follow up can be complicated, and the advice of a specialist clinical malpractice solicitor should always be sought.
Patients Prescribed Wrong Medicine
Being prescribed wrong medicine can cause delays in treatment and can extend the recovery period from an illness. Being prescribed wrong medicine may not cause any long term health damage, and while a medication error may constitute clinical malpractice, not all claims for compensation for incorrect prescriptions will be worthwhile pursuing. However being prescribed wrong medicine can cause serious health problems, and can even be fatal. When you speak with one of our clinical malpractice solicitors about being prescribed wrong medicine, you will have your claim assessed, and you will be given an impartial opinion on whether the claim is worth your while to pursue.
Medical Procedure Errors and Surgical Complications
When patients undergo a surgical procedure in a hospital, they would never expect a mistake to be made by an experienced doctor or surgeon- yet errors often occur. In the majority of cases, these errors are quickly recognised and corrected, a patient would not be aware of any problem and there would be no risk to future health. However there have been numerous instances when medical procedure errors have occurred or when surgical complications have been caused by negligence in an operating theatre. Surgical complications caused by the negligence of surgeons or nurses, and medical procedure errors which cause a patient harm, can be the basis of clinical malpractice compensation claims.
Clinical Malpractice and Wrong Site Surgery
Wrong site surgery claims for compensation tend to involve some of the highest compensation amounts of any clinical malpractice claims and, even though they represent clear cases of clinical malpractice, compensation payments may take months or years to be awarded. Clinical malpractice solicitors will be required to determine who the respondent should be and where in the chain of procedures an error was made. Multiple respondents may be implicated and, despite clinical malpractice never being in doubt, claims for wrong site surgery have potential to become highly complicated.
Free Legal Advice from a Solicitor
Clinical malpractice is a highly complicated area of Irish compensation claims law, and the advice of a specialist clinical malpractice solicitor should be sought to ensure any claim for clinical malpractice compensation is given the greatest chance of success.
To ensure you get accurate, impartial and up to date advice on making a claim for clinical malpractice compensation you should call our clinical malpractice claims helpline on Freephone 
. Both the phone call and the legal advice are completely free of charge, and all calls will be treated in strict confidence.
Our clinical malpractice solicitors will provide a free assessment of a clinical malpractice claim for compensation in Ireland, and will advise you on the strength of your claim, how long it should take to be successfully resolved and what you should do next.
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