Southport Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence – No Win No Fee Claims
Welcome to our guide looking at potential scenarios for a Southport walk-in centre medical negligence incident. Walk-in centres are there to help you when you have an issue that needs looking at right away, but that doesn’t necessitate a trip to the hospital.
When you visit a walk-in centre, you should expect to receive the right standard of care. But what happens when the care you receive falls below this standard and you’re harmed or your condition is made worse as a result? This is what our guide will focus on.
Clinical Negligence Claims Against Walk-In Centres In Southport
Southport walk-in centre medical negligence claims guide
If you’ve been injured, made ill or if your condition has worsened as a result of a healthcare professional breaching their duty of care to you, could you be owed compensation? This guide will explain what constitutes clinical negligence and looks at the process of claiming.
Please read on for more information. If you would prefer to speak to an advisor or if you have any questions after reading this guide, you can get in touch with our team by:
- Calling 0800 073 8804
- Using our online form
- Speaking to us at the live chat to the bottom right of this screen
Select A Section
- A Guide To Claims For A Southport Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence Incident
- What Is Medical Negligence At A Southport Walk-In Centre?
- How To Find Your Nearest Walk-In Centre
- When Can You Access Non-Emergency Care?
- Injury Care Errors At Walk-In Clinics
- Infection Care Errors At Walk-In Clinics
- Sexual Health Care Errors At Walk-In Clinics
- Prescription Errors At Walk-In Clinics
- How To Calculate Compensation For A Southport Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence Occurrence
- Southport Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence – No Win No Fee Cases
- Talk To Us About Your Case
- Where Can I Learn More
A Guide To Claims For A Southport Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence Incident
In this guide, we will look at the process of making a medical negligence claim after you were provided with substandard medical care that caused you harm. To begin with, we will look at what medical negligence is and the duty of care that medical professionals have towards their patients.
We’ll also look at the services that walk-in centres can offer. In addition, we will look at how poor standards of care can lead to harm. We will look at how compensation claims for medical negligence are calculated and how much you could be awarded.
Towards the end of this guide, we will look at No Win No Fee agreements and how they can be beneficial to you when you’re funding legal representation. We’ll also provide some additional guides that you may find useful.
Don’t worry if there are still things you want to know more about after finishing this guide. One of our advisors can take your call and answer any questions you might have. If they feel your claim has a good chance of being successful, they may be able to connect you with our medical negligence solicitor.
What Is Medical Negligence At A Southport Walk-In Centre?
Any practitioner in medicine, whether they are a nurse, a GP or a surgeon, has a duty of care over their patients. The duties of a doctor are set out by the General Medical Council, which is the regulator for doctors in the UK.
When a healthcare provider does not adhere to these professional standards, this is an example of them breaching their duty of care. To make any valid medical negligence claim your case must reflect specific criteria. If medical negligence occurs but you are not affected by it there would be no claim to answer. However, if you are able to prove that medical negligence caused you harm that would not have otherwise happened then you may be eligible for compensation.
You can visit a walk-in centre for a number of different reasons. For example, you may visit a walk-in centre for:
- Minor burn injuries
- Cuts
- Insect bites or stings
- A sprained ankle or wrist
Some walk-in centres might also offer other services, like sexual health services or blood tests. Some doctor-run walk-in centres may be able to prescribe medication. However, you should always call ahead to see what services a walk-in centre offers as they can vary.
What is classed as medical negligence?
In order to claim compensation for medical negligence, the onus is on you to prove that you received care and treatment that was of a poor standard. And that this treatment caused you harm you should not have suffered.
For instance, you may need emergency surgery after presenting at a hospital. This will cause you further harm in the form of the incision that is required for the operation. However, it is within a doctor’s duty of care to operate on you, even though it causes you further injury.
Furthermore, you might be suffering from a condition that your doctor fails to diagnose or that is misdiagnosed as something else. The lack of treatment could cause your condition to worsen and make you seriously ill. However, it may be that your doctor did all they could to treat you but complications meant that they couldn’t reasonably be expected to make a diagnosis.
The Bolam test is a tool used by courts to determine whether a healthcare provider was negligent or not. It involves a panel of the doctor’s peers stating whether the care was of the right level. If they say that the care administered fell below the right level, this may be considered negligence.
How To Find Your Nearest Walk-In Centre
Below, we’ve included the details of two walk-in centres in your area.
Skelmersdale Walk-in Centre
116 – 118 The Concourse
Skelmersdale
West Lancashire
WN8 6LJ
West Lancashire Walk-in Centre
Ormskirk District General Hospital
Wigan Road
Ormskirk
West Lancashire
L39 2AZ
When Can You Access Non-Emergency Care?
To receive treatment from a walk-in centre, you don’t need to make an appointment. You can simply show up and wait to be seen. This makes them useful for people who need medical attention and can’t get an appointment with their GP.
As we’ve already mentioned, you should call ahead before visiting a walk-in centre. They’re only equipped to deal with certain things, and some services aren’t available at all centres. Furthermore, you should check that your condition doesn’t warrant a visit to A&E.
A walk-in centre may be able to:
- Prescribe antibiotics for a chest infection
- Clean and dress a cut or laceration
- Perform an STI test
- Prescribe painkillers for a sprained wrist
Injury Care Errors At Walk-In Clinics
Walk-in centres can provide treatment for minor injuries like sprains, cuts and burns. But how could a patient be affected if they’re provided with substandard care when seeking treatment for one of these conditions?
If you’re not given the right standard of care when seeking treatment for a minor injury, this could result in you getting the wrong treatment or no treatment at all. This, in turn, could mean that your condition gets worse than it would have if you’d received the correct level of care.
Some examples of errors that a walk-in centre doctor or nurse could make are:
- A broken bone is misdiagnosed as a sprain because the doctor failed to listen to your symptoms correctly.
- There are clear signs of a fractured leg but the doctor fails to refer you to the hospital for further tests and treatment.
- You suffer a concussion that is missed because the doctor did not associate your head injury with your symptoms so treatment is delayed.
If your health is harmed by negligent treatment of an injury, you could be entitled to claim compensation. Get in touch with our team for more information and for a no-obligation valuation of your claim.
Infection Care Errors At Walk-In Clinics
Relatively minor infections are sometimes appropriate to take to a walk-in centre. However, as previously mentioned, you should call ahead and check. Some walk-in centres may not have a doctor or nurse prescriber available who can prescribe medication.
If you’re not provided with the right level of care when seeking medical attention for an infection, this could cause your condition to worsen or mean that you experience further harm. Examples of errors that could occur when treating an infection in a walk-in clinic include:
- A doctor prescribes you a medication that you cannot take alongside medication you’re already on, but they fail to check your medical records and so don’t see this
- You’re told to take the wrong dosage of a medication you’re prescribed
- A doctor mistakes a virus for infection and so prescribes you antibiotics that aren’t needed, while your actual condition goes untreated
These errors alone are not enough to form the basis of a claim for medical negligence. In order to claim, you need to show that the treatment you received caused you harm that you wouldn’t have experienced if you’d received the care of an acceptable standard.
If you’re wondering whether you have grounds to make a medical negligence claim after being treated in a Southport walk-in centre, speak to a member of our team today.
Sexual Health Care Errors At Walk-In Clinics
Another service that is provided, at least in some walk-in centres, is sexual health and pregnancy-related treatments. Some walk-in centres can provide STI tests, contraceptives, and short exams related to pregnancy. Not all walk-in centres offer these services, though.
Adhering to professional standards is important in sexual health services just as in other areas of medicine. Failing to do so could result in complications that cause infertility or unwanted pregnancy as a result.
Medical errors that could occur in a walk-in centre might include:
- An STI screening test is carried out incorrectly, meaning that you’re not told about an STI that you have. This causes you to spread it to your partner and also means that it progresses without treatment
- You’re given incorrect information about the dosage of medication you need to take. This means that the medication is not effective
- While pregnant, you visit the walk-in centre with some abdominal pain may be a clear sign of an ectopic pregnancy. The doctor or nurse fails to tell you to visit the hospital for further checks.
Prescription Errors At Walk-In Clinics
In some cases, the nurse practitioners at a walk-in centre could be authorised to prescribe you medication. Providing a patient with the wrong medication could cause them to suffer harm to their health. Taking a medication that you don’t need could make you ill. Furthermore, your actual illness may not be treated as a result.
Some examples of medication errors that cause harm to the patient could include:
- Giving a prescription without checking what other medications you are on, resulting in a reaction between the two drugs
- Prescribing medication without checking whether or not you are allergic to it
- Advising that the wrong dosage of medication is taken
For more information about whether you can claim after a medication error has caused you harm, please get in touch with our team today.
How To Calculate Compensation For A Southport Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence Occurrence
The amount of compensation you receive for harm caused by medical negligence can vary on a number of factors. Your claim will be valued based on the amount of pain you were caused and how long it will take you to recover.
The part of your settlement that covers the harm caused to you is referred to as general damages. To value this head of your claim, you will usually be invited to a medical assessment with an independent expert. They will confirm the harm caused to you by the negligence you experienced and detail their findings in a report.
This report will then be used to value your claim with the help of guidelines provided by the Judicial College. This is a publication that includes a number of different injuries of varying severities alongside guideline compensation brackets. Below, we have included a table containing figures from these guidelines.
| Injury | Compensation |
|---|---|
| Failure to diagnose ectopic pregnancy resulting in infertility | £31,950 to £95,850 |
| Delay in diagnosing ectopic pregnancy | £3,180 to £19,170 |
| Amputation of little finger | £8,110 to £11,490 |
| Amputation of ring and little fingers | In the region of £20,480 |
| Loss of thumb | £33,330 to £51,460 |
| A number of noticeable scars | £7,350 to £21,330 |
| Severe long lasting toxicosis that requires admission to hospital | £36,060 to £49,270 |
| Stomach illness causing disabling pain and diarrhoea for some weeks. | £860 to £3,710 |
| Minor injuries that heal within three months | £1,290 to £2,300 |
| Dermatitis on the hands that lasts for a few months | £1,600 to £3,710 |
Special damages
As well as general damages, you could also be entitled to special damages. These cover financial losses incurred as a result of the harm caused to you. This could include:
- The cost of medication and treatment not available on the NHS
- Loss of earnings because of time taken off work
- Travel to and from hospital appointments
- The cost of cancelled plans due to your injuries
It’s important that you keep a record of any costs you have incurred so that they can be claimed back.
It’s important to note that with both general and special damages, you will only be compensated for the additional pain or harm caused to you by the negligence you experienced, and not by your condition overall.
For instance, if your sprained wrist was misdiagnosed causing your condition to worsen, you would only be compensated for the additional harm caused to you by the negligent misdiagnosis and not the overall pain of the sprained wrist.
If you would like more information on how much your claim could be worth, speak to a member of our team today.
Southport Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence – No Win No Fee Cases
A No Win No Fee agreement is a contract between you and your solicitor. It sets out the terms that they need to meet in order to be paid.
Sometimes, a No Win No Fee agreement is referred to as a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). It means that you won’t be asked to pay your solicitor any upfront fees in order for them to start working on your claim or while it’s ongoing. You also won’t be asked to pay them if your claim is unsuccessful.
If your claim is successful, a small success fee will be deducted from your settlement amount. This will cover their costs and is capped to ensure you always get the majority of the compensation you’re awarded.
If you would like to know more about making a claim for compensation on a No Win No Fee basis, why not speak to our team today? One of our agents could connect you with a solicitor to work on your case.
Talk To Us About Your Case
To find out more details about when you could claim compensation for medical negligence, get in touch with our team. Our advisors can answer any questions that you may have. They may also be able to connect you with a solicitor who can represent you on a No Win No Fee basis.
You can:
- Call us on 0800 073 8804
- Write to us using our online form
- Speak to us at the live chat to the bottom-right of this screen
Where Can I Learn More
Private hospital medical negligence
How to claim for a hospital infection
Other Medical Negligence Claim Guides That May Be Helpful
- Gillingham Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence Claims
- Birkenhead Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence Claims
- Blackburn Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence Claims
- Crawley Walk-In Centre Medical Negligence Claims
Thank you for reading our guide on what to do if you have been harmed by a Southport walk-in centre medical negligence experience.
Written by Yarlett
Checked by Stocks.
