Debating the best way to compensate patients for clinical negligence PART 2

The House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee (HSCC) (2022) report following its NHS litigation reform inquiry, discussed in my previous column (Tingle, 2022), contains a considerable amount of information on the issue of how patients are compensated for clinical negligence. In this column I continue the discussion, linking themes to the recent prosecution of an NHS trust for the death of two patients (Care Quality Commission (CQC), 2022). In considering NHS litigation reform we must also consider current NHS patient safety events to keep the discussion relevant and well grounded.

Issues discussed in the HSCC report included the impact of clinical negligence claims on patients themselves, nurses, doctors involved in a case and on the NHS generally. There was a focus on reining in increasing litigation costs and furthering the development of a patient safety learning culture.