How Do I Claim For Sepsis Misdiagnosis Medical Negligence?

To be able to make a medical negligence compensation claim for a sepsis misdiagnosis, you must meet certain criteria. Firstly, a medical expert must have breached the duty of care they owed you in making the misdiagnosis. Secondly, this must have caused you to experience unnecessary harm.

sepsis misdiagnosis

Sepsis misdiagnosis claims guide

In this guide, we will explain the duty of care that all medical professionals owe when treating patients. Additionally, we will explore the evidence that you could collect to help support your claim. Furthermore, we will discuss how a solicitor from our panel could help you with your case and the benefits of claiming with a No Win No Fee lawyer.

Do not hesitate to contact our advisors today if you have any questions about starting a medical negligence claim. They are available 24/7 and could offer you free legal advice regarding your potential claim.

To discuss your claim today, you can:

Select A Section

  1. Criteria To Claim For Sepsis Misdiagnosis
  2. Causes Of Sepsis Being Misdiagnosed
  3. How To Prove Medical Negligence In The UK
  4. Examples Of Payouts For Sepsis Misdiagnosis
  5. Why Choose UK Law To Claim On A No Win No Fee Basis?
  6. Find Out More About Sepsis Misdiagnosis And Medical Negligence

Criteria To Claim For Sepsis Misdiagnosis

Sepsis is the body’s overwhelming reaction to an infection. The symptoms of sepsis can be hard to spot and can be similar to other conditions, such as the flu. Additionally, the symptoms of sepsis can appear differently in young children versus adults.

Some symptoms that an adult could display that may indicate sepsis include:

  • Difficulting breathing.
  • Slurred speech and acting confused.
  • A rash that doesn’t fade when a glass is rolled over it- this is similar to meningitis.
  • Grey, blue, and pale blotchy skin, lips or tongue.

Since sepsis can be life-threatening, it is important to receive a correct diagnosis as soon as possible so you can receive the appropriate treatment.

To be able to make a claim for your sepsis misdiagnosis, you will need to prove that a medical practitioner breached their duty of care. This, then, must have also caused you to suffer unnecessary harm. Instances where you have suffered avoidable harm due to a healthcare practitioner breaching their duty of care are known as medical negligence.

All healthcare professionals owe a duty of care when treating patients. They must ensure that you receive the correct standard of care. If this duty were to be breached, you could endure further harm that could have been avoided.

How Long Do I Have To Begin A Sepsis Misdiagnosis Claim?

Before making a medical negligence claim, you must ensure that you are still within the time limitations to begin your claim. Generally, you will have 3 years to start your claim. This can run from the date medical negligence took place. However, it can also run from the date you first realised (or would have been expected to realise) that the harm you endured was directly caused by negligence.

Contact our advisors today if you are unsure whether you are still within the time limit to begin your claim. Furthermore, they could connect you with a lawyer from our panel if your claim is valid.

Causes Of Sepsis Being Misdiagnosed

Some examples of how a sepsis misdiagnosis could occur include:

  • Your sepsis is misdiagnosed as a chest infection, despite displaying clear symptoms of the condition. This could then also result in a delay in treatment for your sepsis which could prove fatal.
  • Your urine output test was inaccurately measured, causing you to receive a misdiagnosis.
  • Your test results are mixed up with those of another patient, meaning you receive their diagnosis.

However, it is important to note that misdiagnosis cases will not automatically lead to a claim. If a medical professional acted within their duty of care and your sepsis was still misdiagnosed, you might not be eligible to claim compensation.

Do not hesitate to contact our advisors today if you are still unsure what circumstances could be classed as medical negligence in the UK. They could also advise you on whether you may be eligible for compensation.

How To Prove Medical Negligence In The UK

To be eligible to claim following a sepsis misdiagnosis, you must be able to prove a healthcare professional’s negligence caused you to suffer unnecessary harm that could have been avoided. You will not be able to claim for the initial sepsis, only the worsening of your condition that the misdiagnosis caused.

Providing sufficient evidence could help support your claim, such as:

  • A copy of your medical records stating your sepsis diagnosis and the treatment you’ve received.
  • Test results, such as blood tests.
  • Scans, such as X-Rays of your lungs.
  • A copy of your prescriptions.

Furthermore, the findings from the Bolam test could also be used in the claim process. This is when a panel of medical experts trained in a relevant field assess whether the care you received was of an acceptable standard. If they say it was not, then this could support your claim.

Contact our advisors today if you have any additional questions about proving medical negligence in compensation claims. Additionally, they may connect you with a solicitor from our panel who could help you with gathering evidence, provided you’re eligible to claim.

Examples Of Payouts For Sepsis Misdiagnosis

General damages is the head of claim that will compensate you for the harm you have endured due to a medical professional’s negligence in a successful sepsis misdiagnosis claim.

Below, we have created a table using the compensation guidelines found in the 16th edition of the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This is a document that many legal professionals use to assist them when valuing claims, as it assigns compensation brackets to various injuries.

However, the specific factors of your claim may affect how much compensation you receive. Therefore, the following table should only be used as a guide.

Edit
Injury Description Compensation Guidelines
Kidney – (a) Permanent damage or the loss of both kidneys. £169,400 to £210,400
Kidney – (b) A serious risk of developing a urinary tract infection or losing the kidney’s natural function. Up to £63,980
Kidney – (c) Loss of one kidney with the other suffering no damage. £30,770 to £44,880
Bowels – (a) A complete loss of the natural bowel function with double incontinence and other medical issues. Up to £184,200
Bowels – (b) A potential dependence on a colostomy due to the complete loss of the bowel’s natural function. Amounts up to £150,110
Bladder – (b) A complete loss of the control and function of the bladder. Up to £140,660
Bladder – (c) Some pain and incontinence due to the serious impairment of the bladder’s control. £63,980 to £79,930
Brain Damage – Moderate (iii) A slight risk of epilepsy, with memory and concentration issues. £43,060 to £90,720
Spleen – (a) The spleen has been lost, which causes a continuing risk of internal disorders and infections due to the damaged immune system. £20,800 to £26,290
Spleen – (b) Where the above risks are minimal or not present at all. £4,350 to £8,640

What Further Damages Could You Claim?

Additionally, special damages could be included in your compensation settlement. If you have experienced any financial losses that were directly caused by medical negligence occurring, special damages could compensate you for these. Some examples of the financial losses you could be compensated for include:

You could provide evidence of these losses in support of your claim. Examples include:

  • Receipts
  • Bank statements
  • Payslips

Contact our advisors today to find out whether you may be eligible for compensation if you have received a sepsis misdiagnosis.

Why Choose UK Law To Claim On A No Win No Fee Basis?

If you have received a negligent misdiagnosis, our advisors could inform you whether you could make a medical negligence claim. If they believe you may be eligible for compensation, they could put you in contact with a skilled solicitor from our panel.

They have a vast amount of experience handling various medical negligence claims. Additionally, they may offer you a type of No Win No Fee agreement called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).

If you claim on a No Win No Fee basis, you are usually not expected to pay anything to your solicitor upfront for their services. Furthermore, you are generally not obligated to pay them for their services if the claim is unsuccessful.

However, you will pay your solicitor a success fee in the event of a successful claim. The fee is taken from your compensation award, and the percentage they can take is capped by law.

Contact our advisors today if you have any questions about claiming with a No Win No fee solicitor from our panel in your medical negligence compensation claim.

Get In Touch With Our Expert Team

If you still have questions about starting a medical negligence claim for your sepsis misdiagnosis, you can contact our advisors today. Our friendly team is available to answer your questions and offer free legal advice 24/7. Additionally, they could advise you on whether you may be eligible for compensation and could connect you with a solicitor from our panel to work on your case.

To discuss your claim today, you can:

Find Out More About Sepsis Misdiagnosis And Medical Negligence

If you are looking for more guides regarding medical negligence claims:

Or, if you are looking for additional information, you can use the links below:

Contact our advisors today to see whether you could make a claim after a sepsis misdiagnosis resulting from negligence.

Writer AI

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