Claiming compensation for a diagnosis delay

When tackling medical conditions, a swift diagnosis is often key to ensuring successful treatment but there can, unfortunately, be bumps in the road that can slow the process down. Sometimes, a slow referral or a postponed appointment will not have an adverse impact on your health, but in cases where your condition worsens, you may be able to claim compensation for the harmful effects of any negligent diagnosis delay.

As medical negligence specialists, we have seen many patients let down by the people and the system that is supposed to care for them. Healthcare professionals have a duty to ensure diagnoses are made in a timely and accurate manner. If they fail in this responsibility, you could have every right to feel let down, particularly in cases where irrevocable damage is done to your health.

If you are considering pursuing a medical negligence claim, you can contact us today for free, no-obligation advice on your case.

How might a diagnosis delay happen?

We all know that the NHS is under strain, and that the limits on staff time and resources can sometimes cause longer waits for appointments. However, this does not give health professionals a free pass to neglect their patients. Sometimes, diagnosis delays can arise in the appointments themselves due to errors from doctors, and in other times it can come down to organisational errors affecting the NHS as a whole.

As an example, if you bring a concern to a doctor, they could dismiss your concerns, perhaps by telling you to come back in a few months if your symptoms persist, or by failing to refer you to the appropriate specialist who may have had the knowledge to diagnose your illness or injury. You may be led to believe that there is nothing to worry about. But if they should have acted differently at the time and you end up suffering as a result of this, that is when you may have been the victim of negligence.

It is important to remember that a diagnosis delay does not constitute medical negligence in and of itself. Normally, your health must have been adversely affected as a consequence of negligence for you to be able to make a claim.

Making a compensation claim

If you make a compensation claim for a diagnosis delay, we will need to carefully evaluate your medical records. Then, with the help of a medical specialist, we can look to work out exactly how the negligence might have occurred.

After we have gotten a grasp of the evidence, we can then look to value your claim on the basis of the pain, suffering and loss of amenity caused. This is as well as assessing any financial losses and expenses incurred as a result of your condition or injury, if applicable. For example, if you were burdened with extra medication costs or time off work due to the diagnosis delay, we can aim to recover compensation for these extra expenses and lost earnings.

Claim with the Medical Negligence Lawyers

We have years of experience in medical negligence claims, so we know all too well how difficult and sensitive these cases can be for our clients. Nothing can reverse the suffering you may have been left with, but it is important that you receive the compensation you deserve to help support you through this difficult time. We are here to help you at every stage of the claims process.

To receive free, no-obligation advice from our expert team, you can contact us today or register your details for a call-back.