This is the staggering amount Blackpool's NHS hospital trust has paid out in child medical negligence claims

The issue of medical negligence when it comes to children’s care has been in sharp focus with recent cases including Lucy Letby, a former Countess of Chester Hospital nurse who is serving 15 life sentences for murdering seven babies and attempting to murder seven others.

More locally, in September, the Gazette revealed how a High Court judge had awarded a young boy with multiple complex needs a £15m compensation care package after Blackpool Teaching Hospitals admitted that the injuries he sustained at birth could have been avoided.

Children and families affected by medical negligence can lodge a claim via NHS Resolution which is a government scheme paid for by NHS Trusts that acts as an insurance policy and pays for NHS claims.

Blackpool figures

Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has had 31 claims and incidents of medical negligence involving children aged between 0-17 reported to the NHS legal body since 2019.

Data obtained by Medical Negligence Assist has found that the Trust, which runs Blackpool Victoria, Clifton and Fleetwood Hospitals, has settled 25 claims with damages amounting to £35,835,899 - not including NHS or claimant legal costs paid. It is the highest amount paid out of any other NHS Trust in the Lancashire and South Cumbria Region.

Lancashire

Elsewhere across Lancashire and South Cumbria, the highest number of claims was settled by East Lancashire Hospital Trust which has had to fork out £29,177,534 to settle 33 legal claims of child medical negligence lodged against in the last five years. Since 2019, the Trust which runs The Royal Blackburn Hospital and Burnley General has had 56 claims and incidents reported to the NHS legal body.

Lancashire Teaching Hospitals Trust, which runs the Royal Preston Hospital and Chorley and South Ribble Hospital, paid the second highest figure settling 32 such claims to the tune of £31.6 million. It had a total of 37 incidents of medical negligence surrounding children’s care reported to NHS Resolution.

The University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS FT - which runs Furness General Hospital in Barrow, the Royal Lancaster Infirmary and Westmorland General Hospital in Kendal, settled 17 out of 20 claims made, paying damages of £17,235,593.

The North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) settled five of 23 claims in the period, paying damages of £168,870.

Consequences

Medical Negligence Assist solicitor, Sophie Cope said: “The consequence of clinical negligence involving children’s care can be life-changing for those affected but equally devastating for the families. As well as the obvious emotional impact, injuries can cause a bigger financial impact than many can bear.”

What do the Trusts say?

Professor Sarah O’Brien, chief nurse for Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board, said: “Safe patient care is always the highest priority for all of the NHS trusts across Lancashire and South Cumbria, and we have robust processes in place to ensure we learn from the experiences of patients, especially when their experience does not meet our high standards.

“There is work taking place across all our Trusts collaboratively to draw from these experiences with the aim of improving the standards and quality of care.”

Bigger picture

While details of Lancashire and South Cumbria cases have not been diclosed, death, brain damage, cerebral palsy and bowel damage are just some of the conditions and injuries children have sustained as a result of medical negligence across NHS Trusts in England.

Failure and delays in treatment and diagnosis are among the top causes of child clinical negligence claims being lodged and have cost the National Health Service more than £3 billion in compensation payouts alone in the last five years. Other injuries included, Erb’s palsy, removal of testicles and hypoxia - which is a condition where cells or tissues do not have enough oxygen to function effectively and can lead to pneumonia, fibrosis or lung disease.

Medical Negligence Assist’s investigation revealed that a total of 6,536 children’s clinical negligence claims and incidents have been reported to the NHS legal body in the last five years.