Accident and Emergency Negligence

Legal Helpline: ☎ 1800 529 835

Our Australian medical negligence solicitors handle claims against hospitals. If you have been injured in an emergency department and would like obligation-free legal advice, just complete the contact form or call our free legal helpline.

The Emergency Department (also known as the Casualty Department) is involved in the immediate care of patients presenting with trauma related injuries as well as patients who are brought directly to the hospital.

Patients in emergency often present with minor trauma such as cuts, abrasions, lacerations, soft tissue injuries and bruising, as well as more serious conditions such as  fractures, head injuries, burns and trauma the result of road traffic accidents and assaults.

Patients who suddenly feel unwell may also be taken to hospital and be treated for conditions such as heart attacks (myocardial infarctions), asthma attacks, meningitis and strokes.

Medical negligence is the failure by a medical professional to act within the appropriate standard of care, which results in injury to a patient.

Examples of clinical areas where medical negligence may occur in the accident and emergency department:

• incorrect triaging
• incorrect diagnosis
• unreasonable delay in treatment resulting in loss of a chance of a better outcome, or causing damage
• missed fractures
• missed foreign bodies left in wounds
• missed intracranial bleeding (subdural haematoma)
• missed myocardial infarction

Staff who work in accident and emergency departments need careful training and supervision, with ready access to senior medical advice. Errors occur as a result of failures of history taking, physical examination, interpretation of radiology, and communication and poor quality notes. Many of these errors imply substandard care and are actionable in compensation claims.

Negligence Claims Lawyers

A solicitor who reviews your case will need to look at your Hospital Records to assess whether the hospital breached its duty of care to you, and whether this has caused you damage. This documentation will usually contain the Record of your Attendance at the Accident and Emergency Department as well as any In-patient Records, Operation Records, Nursing Records, and Correspondence, X-rays and CT or MRI scans and other investigative test results.

If you believe you have suffered from Accident and Emergency negligence you should seek legal advice from an appropriately qualified solicitor as soon as possible as there are restrictions such as time limits in making legal claims. We have experienced lawyers who can review your emergency medicine treatment case and advise you if your injuries are the result of incompetence.