How do you prove a medical negligence claim?

In order to prove a medical negligence claim, there are two tests that we must apply.  First, we must show that the medical staff breached their duty of care to you.  This means showing that the standard of care you received was below the standard expected of a reasonable medical professional and that no other responsible professional would have treated you in the same way.  Secondly, we have to establish “causation”. This means showing that the substandard treatment you received caused you an injury on the balance of probabilities (over a 50% chance).  Causation is split into two different parts; factual causation (what would/should have happened had the breach not occurred) and medical causation (had the appropriate steps been taken, on the balance of probabilities, your injury would have been avoided).

In order to satisfy these tests, we will need to request copies of your medical records and instruct an independent medical expert to advise on whether the care you received was appropriate.  If this report is supportive, it is likely that we will need to instruct further experts to advise on whether the substandard care caused you an injury.  If all the reports are supportive, we will write to the Defendant (the organisation/person whom the claim is against) setting out the allegations in detail and ask them to admit liability (i.e. that they were negligent).