In this guide, we will give you a breakdown of what you will expect as compensation or settlement payout after a successful orthopaedic negligence claim.
Orthopaedic procedures involve bones, fractures and joint replacements. These procedures are expected to be carried out with a high level of care and as any act of negligence could have a long term or permanent and life altering impact on the patient.
Orthopaedics as a branch of medicine refers to diagnosis, prevention and correction or treatment of conditions such as bone fractures, joints requiring replacement and other forms of musculoskeletal deformities. Orthopaedics deals with bones, joints, muscles, tendons, and ligaments.
Orthopaedic injuries are usually treated by orthopaedic surgeons and can be caused by various reasons including road traffic accidents and slips, trips and falls.
Sometimes, an orthopaedic injury can be caused as a result of a failed orthopaedic procedure, or other forms of negligent treatment from the orthopaedic surgeon or another medical professional. When this is so, you may be able to make orthopaedic claims.
What Are Orthopaedic Injury Compensation Claims?
Orthopaedic negligence claims refers to when an individual takes legal action against his or her orthopaedic surgeon for acts of negligence which has caused the individual pain, suffering, trauma or complications which could have been well avoided.
The following acts of negligence could give you enough grounds to orthopaedic claims;
- Misdiagnosing the patient’s condition
- Delays in making the right diagnosis
- Performing an orthopaedic surgery without obtaining an informed consent of the patient
- Performing the surgery on the wrong location of the body
- Unnecessary damage to internal organs or unnecessary nerve damage during surgery
- Performing the surgery wrongly or using a wrong technique
- Post-operative infection
- Using an incorrect prosthesis for the surgery
Such negligent actions are more like these can be enough reasons for you to make orthopaedic malpractice claims. Our specialist orthopaedic claims solicitors having represented many clients in different orthodontic claims will during our free consultation session, be able to discuss with you, offer you free legal advice and if we are convinced that you have a valid claim, we will represent you under our no win no fee policy. Through this policy, you can make claims without having to pay a dime as legal fees.
Orthopaedic Injuries Caused By Negligence
When an orthopaedic negligence occurs, there are several injuries which the individual can suffer, some of which may be temporal, permanent, mild or devastating. They include;
- A fractured hip
- Fractured to the vertebrae
- A fractured scaphoid missed as the wrong X-rays were carried out
- Leg discrepancy
- Chronic Knee issues due to the wrong fitting of prosthesis
- Ligament reconstruction problems as a result of wrongly placed grafts
Orthopaedic Negligence Statistics in the UK
Between 2019 and 2020, there were 205 cases of “Never Events” logged in against the NHS. These are events that are entirely preventable and shouldn’t even occur. A break down show that there were;
- 69 surgeries done on the wrong body site
- 42 cases of foreign objects retained in the patient’s body
- 16 cases of misplaced gastric tubes leading to wrongly administered feed
Furthermore, out of the 11,682 clinical negligence claims opened against the NHS in 2019/20, there were about 1262 orthopaedic related claims- the third highest per department.
How To Make Orthopaedic Surgery Compensation Claims?
When you decide to make an orthopaedic negligence claim, you have to be prepared to prove beyond reasonable doubt that indeed the orthopaedic surgeon was negligent and his failure to provide you with the duty of care he owes you has caused you the harm, pain, injury or trauma you are passing through.
Therefore, you must be able to demonstrate that
- The Orthopaedist or Orthopaedic surgeon owed you a duty of care
- The Orthopaedist or Orthopaedic surgeon deviated from that duty of care to you
- That breach or deviation from that duty of care to you is the direct cause of your present predicament
- Consequently, you have suffered damages not only physically but socially, financially and psychologically
To effectively demonstrate this, you will need several necessary documents which will serve as evidence to support your claims. These include-
- Detailed Statements of everything that happened
- Witness Statements which can come from family or friends’
- Medical records including test and scan results
- Photographs
- Report from a different medical expert on your current state and the effects of the negligent treatment after a proper medical examination
The claims process is briefly summarized under the following stages-
- Speak with your specialist medical negligence lawyer
- Fund your claims
- Gather your evidence
- Submit a letter of claim to the defendants and establish liability
- Register your claims in court
- Negotiate a favorable compensation fee
How Compensation For Orthopaedic Negligence Claims?
Every orthopaedic negligence claim is different and unique from the other and so the amount of compensation that may ultimately be paid will also be different. For instance, compensation for misdiagnosis of fracture will surely be different from how much compensation you will get for a broken foot.
Several factors which are divided into General and Special damages play a role in determining the final compensation fee. These are given here;
- Pain and suffering
- Long-term prognosis
- Cost of care required
- Loss of earnings as a result of having to give up your job
- Costs of medical treatment and physiotherapy
- Costs of housing adjustments
- Costs of purchasing aids, equipment and assistive devices
- Estimated future financial costs
Table Showing Estimated Compensation Amount For Different Orthodontic Injuries
| THE TYPE OF INJURY SUFFERED | NOTES | COMPENSATION PAYOUT |
| Severe Pelvis and hip injury | Likelihood of hip replacement surgery in the future. | Average compensation for broken hip £36,770 to £49,270 |
| Severe Psychological damage | poor prognosis and marked problems with life, work and relationships. | £51,460 to £108,620 |
| Moderately severe Psychological damage | Better prognosis significant problems with life, education, work and relationships, | £17,900 to £51,460 |
| Moderate Psychological damage | Good prognosis although there will be some problems with life, education, work and relationships. | £5,500 to £17,900 |
| Severe neck injuries | Serious fractures or damage to discs in the cervical spine.. | £61,710 to £122,860 |
| Moderate back injuries | Substantial risk of osteoarthritis. | £26,050 to £36,390 |
| Knee injury compensation amounts | Chronic minor symptoms. | £5,680 to £12,900 |
| knee injury compensation amounts | Major injuries such as dislocated knee or a torn meniscus | £13,920 to £24,580 |
| Severe foot injuries | Osteoporosis. Fractures of both heels. | Compensation for a broken foot £39,390 to £65,710 |
| Amputations – Leg | Loss of Both Legs | £225,960 to £264,650 |
| Amputations – Leg | Below-knee Amputation of Both Legs | £189,110 to £253,480 |
| Amputations – Arm | Loss of Both Arms | £225,960 to £281,520 |
| Amputations – Arm | Loss of one arm – Arm Amputated at the Shoulder | Not less than £128,710 |
Through our no win no fee policy, our medical claims solicitors can represent you and make claims for Orthopaedic negligence with no financial risks to you. You will not have to pay for any legal fees before or during the entire claims process until the case is won where 25% of your compensation award will be taken as “success fee” while you receive the rest of your settlement payout.
Our phone lines are open for you to reach out to us. Give us a call on 0800 644 4240 or fill out our online free claims assessment form to begin your claims.
Contact A Specialist Solicitor Today For A Free Claim Assessment
Call Us Today On: 0800 644 4240
Make A Claim Contact Us
