October 29th, 2009
A girl who went blind after doctors failed to spot a brain tumour has been awarded £1.5 million in compensation.
Tatum Rock, now 16, went into King George Hospital in Essex after banging her head in a fall in 1999.
She had X-rays, but was sent home when the radiologist missed a large brain tumour. Although the condition came to light four months later and she had corrective surgery, it was too late to save her sight.
An investigation revealed that had the X-ray been read properly, the victim would have had surgery immediately and her sight would most likely have been saved.
Tatum took legal action against Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust, which has now admitted liability for the misdiagnosis and agreed to the payout.
Hospital bosses apologised for the failings and wished Tatum well for her future at university.
Research from Imperial College London recently revealed that as many as one in six NHS patients are being misdiagnosed by either GPs or hospital staff.
Tags: 5 Million, 5m, Barking Havering And Redbridge, Brain Tumour, Corrective Surgery, Doctors, Essex, Four Months, Gps, Havering, Hospital Staff, Hospitals Nhs Trust, Imperial College London, Misdiagnosis, Nhs Patients, Radiologist, University Hospitals Nhs Trust, X Ray, X Rays
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June 23rd, 2008
Ethnic minorities in Scotland are being failed by the NHS, it has been claimed.
A leading academic at Edinburgh University has said that due to a lack of information being held by GPs, ethnic minorities are not receiving the level of treatment they are entitled to.
Professor Raj Bhopal, a public health specialist at Edinburgh’s medical school, also said that medical professionals are continuing to breach policy and miss legal targets for addressing inequalities in treatment, reports the Sunday Herald.
"To improve the health of the whole population we need to understand the needs of the whole community within that population," commented Professor Bhopal.
He added: "That is how we can go about reducing inequalities in health care."
Dr Ken Lawton chair of the Scottish Council of the Royal College of General Practitioners, the body representing Scotland’s GPs, said that doctors were meeting their duties despite the fact it was difficult to record the necessary data.
Tags: Doctors, Dr Ken, Edinburgh University, Ethnic Minorities, Gps, Health Care, Inequalities In Health, Legal Targets, Medical Professionals, Medical School, Necessary Data, Nhs Scotland, Population, Public Health Specialist, Raj Bhopal, Royal College Of General Practitioners, Scottish Council, Sunday Herald
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June 19th, 2008
Almost £3 million has been paid in compensation on behalf of GPs to patients suffering from depression, it has been revealed.
The Medical Defence Union (MDU), the largest organisation of its kind in the UK, said the money had been used to settle 30 claims relating to treatment of patients within a recent ten-year-period, reports Medical News Today.
Misdiagnosis and mismanagement of patients were among the main reasons for many of the claims.
Consultant psychiatrist and MDU council members Professor Femi Oyebode commented in the latest issue of MDU Journal that in most cases, the treatment of depression is relatively straightforward.
"However when something does go wrong, the nature of the condition and the type of medication involved means there is significant potential for an adverse outcome," he said.
According to NHS Direct, most of the 5,000 suicides committed every year in the UK are linked to depression, with women twice as likely to suffer from it as men.
Tags: 3m, Consultant Psychiatrist, Council Members, Femi, Gps, Mdu, Medical Defence Union, Medical News, Medication, Misdiagnosis, Mismanagement, Money, News Today, Suffering From Depression, Suicides, Treatment Of Depression
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June 16th, 2008
Child health experts have raised concerns about a fruit-flavoured placebo pill that tricks children into thinking they are getting medical treatment, it has been reported.
The pills – Obecalp (placebo spelled backwards) – are to be launched in the UK and manufacturers say they facilitate a child’s progression through childhood without having to resort to medication.
Efficacy, the company marketing Obecalp, say the pills – which will cost £3 for 50 – can help stimulate the body’s ability to repair itself.
However, the vice-chair of the Royal College of GPs Dr Clare Gerada said: "This placebo disempowers parents. It is telling them that unless you give your children this pill there’s nothing else."
In a series of articles debating whether or not prescribing placebos is an ethical practice, Dr Gary P Posner argued that while administering them might be acceptable by societies "politically correct standards", by the principles of medical science it is not.
Tags: Child Health, Dr Gary, Ethical Practice, Gps, Health Experts, Marketing, Medical Science, Medical Treatment, Medication, Medication Efficacy, Parents, Pills, Placebo Pill, Placebos, Posner, Vice Chair
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