LEGAL EAGLE: Hospitals and care providers have a legal obligation known as ‘duty of candour’

All hospitals and care providers have an obligation known as the 'duty of candour'.

I underwent hip surgery at a hospital last year and since then have had a lot of pain and problems moving the leg. I have just received a letter from the hospital telling me that something has gone wrong. This was a shock, what should I do?

For some time now, all hospitals and care providers have been under a legal obligation to be open and transparent with patients when something has gone wrong with their care and the error has caused some harm. This obligation was imposed upon them because it became clear that some were being less than honest with patients and their relatives. The obligation is known as the “duty of candour”.

Before you received the letter, someone from the hospital should have tried to contact you and speak to you about what they had discovered. They should have provided support, if required, when breaking the news.

The law requires them to tell you all the facts and what further enquiries are appropriate.

Obviously, they should apologise and then confirm what they have told you in writing. They should let you know about the outcome of their enquiries. It would be expected they would tell you how they are going to stop this happening in the future.

All professional bodies that regulate doctors, nurses, midwives, and others have made clear they expect staff to comply with this obligation. If they fail to do so this may be considered as misconduct and could affect their professional registration.

If a hospital fails to tell patients about such incidents, then they could be fined. They may also not be paid for the operation or care they gave if this was an NHS hospital.

If you are dissatisfied with the outcome and the hospital do not deal with your concerns, you could make a complaint. If this still does not resolve your concerns, then you could take your complaint to the Ombudsman.

Unfortunately, neither the obligation to tell you about what has happened, or the complaints process, will include financial compensation for the pain and suffering you experienced, or for the losses and expenses you might have incurred. You might have expected they would be under an obligation to pay to you your expenses and losses. Unfortunately, If you wish or need to be compensated for such losses, you will need to pursue a civil claim.

We at Ben Hoare Bell LLP have the appropriate expertise in dealing with cases for clinical negligence. Contact us on 0191 565 3112 or [email protected]