Litigation and patient–carer, safety issues in the COVID-19 crisis

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to raise a myriad of ethical, legal, and patient and staff safety issues. Unfortunately, there is little time to reflect on these. We are in the middle of a war and, as the virus rages on, new situations develop demanding quick reactions. Health professionals are heroically working in challenging environments and adjustments to traditional working practices often need to be made urgently. These include working in less than satisfactory environments often without some necessary personal protective equipment (PPE):

‘In a significant U-turn, PHE advised frontline staff to wear a flimsy plastic apron with coveralls when gowns ran out, in a move that doctors and nurses fear may lead to more of them contracting the virus and ultimately putting lives at risk.’

There is legislation and case law covering the employer–employee relationship, which may subsequently be tested in the courts in relation to COVID-19 and PPE when NHS staff and others have time to fully reflect on events. Horsey and Rackley (2019) discuss the nature of the employer's duty to exercise reasonable care for their employees' safety: