What should you do if a Medical Procedure Goes Wrong?

The Hippocratic Oath states that all medical professionals are obligated to provide the best care possible and never do their patients harm. Unfortunately, medics are fallible, mistakes do happen and sometimes, medical negligence may indeed cause you harm and damage your body.

It’s a tough situation to be in, as the healthcare officials that you have placed your trust in may have betrayed you, depending on the particulars of the situation. This article goes through the steps you need to take if your medical procedure has gone wrong.

Preliminary steps

Healthcare officials will respond to a mistake made in a medical procedure by doing their best to reverse or remedy the situation. You should be informed as soon as possible that a mistake has been made, and that the doctors are doing everything in their power to help.

You may not have been satisfied by the level of care provided after they have made a mistake. Also, if you’ve been cursed with negligent hospital staff, they may act as if nothing is wrong, or try and put some distance between themselves and the problem.

If they have failed to address the issue, you must start preparing a formal complaint to the hospital authorities.

Making your complaint

Firstly, make sure that you have all the evidence needed for your complaint. You must always try the right channels before you move onto consulting a solicitor. Submit your complaint to the hospital authorities, or the Care Quality Commission, who will decide what can be done about your troubles.

If this leads to nowhere or the board is not resolving your problem swiftly enough, you may want to consult a solicitor. Usually, it’s best to go with solicitors who are well versed and experienced in your particular area of concern, like Jefferies Solicitors.

Don’t be discouraged from going all the way

The healthcare officials responsible for your unfortunate situation may try to dissuade you from making your complaint and getting a solicitor involved. You may also be discouraged by fears that your continuing treatment could be affected by the fact that you’ve lodged a complaint.

However, it is important to keep reminding yourself that what you are doing is responsible. You must do the right thing, not just for yourself, but to set an example and make sure this kind of mistake doesn’t occur again, and that healthcare officials will be more careful in the future.