Emedinews:Insights on Medicolegal Issues:UK Clinical negligence law –Bolam – v – Friern Hospital Management Committee 1957

UK Clinical negligence law –Bolam – v – Friern Hospital Management Committee 1957

Sir Liam Donaldson – "Patients deserve to receive quality healthcare"

• UK Clinical negligence law defines negligence as any act or omission which falls short of a standard to be expected of "the reasonable man."
• It is necessary to show that whatever the Doctor did or did not do fell below the standard of a reasonably competent Doctor in that field of medicine.
• In the leading case of "Bolam – v – Friern Hospital Management Committee 1957" it was stated that a doctor must act in accordance with a practice which is accepted as proper by a responsible body of men
• There are several acceptable ways of doing something and this may mean that there is no negligence if an alternative method is chosen.
• The fact that another person would not have done things in the same way does not automatically mean that there was clinical negligence.
• The Doctor will be able to defend the compensation claim successfully, if it can shown that a responsible body of reputable Doctors in the relevant field would have acted in a similar manner.
• This means that a judge will hear evidence from experts and decide whether the actions taken were appropriate.