GP Negligence Claim Solicitors

If you feel like your doctor was negligent, and you'd like to know if you have a strong claim for compensation, please contact the GP Negligence Solicitors at Sheldon Davidson Solicitors today and we will be happy to help you decide how to proceed.

Your GP is usually the first person you turn to when you need professional healthcare advice.  GPs are required to make swift effective decisions based on our symptoms, our medical history alongside their knowledge and experience.  They are your first line of defence against allowing a serious illness to progress.  Life-long relationships often form between a patient and their GP.  It is not uncommon for a person to have the same GP from being a child through to adulthood.

All of this puts a lot of responsibility on your family doctor to give you the right advice. It may be down to their sole discretion whether you get referred to the hospital to see a specialist, or sent home to recover without any further professional help. If you feel like your GP was negligent in the treatment or advice they gave you, or that they missed a serious health condition that was able to develop more due to a lack of intervention, we can help.

Sheldon Davidson Solicitors are a leading medical negligence law firm in Manchester.  Our experienced Medical Negligence Lawyers understand the anxiety and discomfort that can come from an undiagnosed condition or poor quality of medical treatment. We provide a supportive and sensitive service to help you get the compensation you deserve.  

We have a high degree of expertise in this sensitive and complex area of law, so we are perfectly placed to answer any questions you may have about what has happened to you.

Should I sue my doctor?

No matter what the details of your case may be, you might feel reluctant to sue your doctor.  They might be someone you have seen for a long time and come to think of as a friend.

But remember that when they treat you for a medical condition, they are acting in a professional capacity. You are entitled to a minimum standard of care, which means you are also entitled to compensation if you do not receive that standard.

GP Negligence can leave you in pain and discomfort, facing a long recovery time following a period of poor health, and potentially out of pocket due to being unable to work or costs relating to physiotherapy and other recuperation.

In the worst cases, you might be left with a condition you cannot recover from, ranging from chronic health conditions and breathing difficulties to mobility problems, amputation or even death.

Whether the impact on you was temporary or permanent, physical, mental, or even financial, it is reasonable to turn to the justice system to recover costs and any compensation you are entitled to.

What is GP Negligence?

Negligence by a doctor can take many different forms, but it's all about receiving the required level of care. Your treatment may be negligent if:

• Your doctor does not examine you or take you seriously during a consultation.
• They miss important symptoms, physical abnormalities like tumours, or blood results.
• They prescribe the wrong medication (or no medication at all).
• They fail to refer you to a specialist for a serious health problem.
• They do not act quickly enough on time-sensitive conditions like cancer.

This is not an exhaustive list. You may have received unusual treatment or your doctor may have missed a rare condition. Unique circumstances can still mean you are entitled to make a compensation claim.

If you feel like your doctor was negligent in their treatment of you, and you'd like to know if you have a strong claim for compensation, please contact the GP Negligence Solicitors at Sheldon Davidson Solicitors today and we will be happy to help you decide how to proceed.

Can I sue my GP for misdiagnosis?

If a doctor misdiagnoses your medical condition, and this mistake leads to pain or suffering, you can sue them for medical negligence. Medical misdiagnosis occurs when a healthcare professional fails to investigate symptoms correctly, or fails to identify the condition correctly. It may also be due to a misinterpretation of test results.

A misdiagnosis could mean that you undergo unnecessary treatment or take the wrong medicines. Depending on the nature of the condition you’ve been wrongly told you have, they might be psychological and emotional consequences with significant impacts on your life.

If you suffer a delayed diagnosis, you may not receive the treatment you needed and your condition could become worse.

GP Negligence Claims can be complex, especially if they involve multiple factors over a long period of time. It is vital that you seek reliable, professional legal advice before pursuing a claim.

What is the correct way for a GP to treat me?

All healthcare professionals have a duty of care to their patients. They have a legal obligation to safeguard patients from harm while in their care.

Whenever you see your GP or you are treated in a hospital, there is a prescribed and legally recognisable level of care that must be met.

The level of treatment you should expect from your GP can vary depending on your condition, but you should always feel valued and taken seriously.

This starts with some basic expectations about the service your GP offers:

• Ability to access an appointment, especially for serious symptoms, without delay.
• In-depth assessment of your physical condition, examination and discussion.
• Appropriate medication prescribed, including the correct dosage.

Just because your doctor prescribes a medication, it doesn't mean it is correct. If you think you have been prescribed painkillers or antibiotics when you needed something more specific, this can also count as negligence by your doctor. 

When appropriate for your condition, your GP is responsible for referring you to the hospital for treatment or tests, or for consultation with specialists.

It is important that this is done as soon as possible so you can get the level of treatment you need.

Is there a time limit on GP Negligence Claims?

Most personal injury & medical negligence compensation claims must be made within three years of the date of the incident. However, there are some exceptions.

For example, if you received inadequate treatment by a doctor but you only found out later that this had allowed a serious medical condition to develop, the three-year limit may apply from the date you found out instead. This is known as the date of knowledge.

There are several other exceptions, including if the patient is a child, an adult who lacks mental capacity, or in rare circumstances when the court decides to extend the deadline based on some unique aspect of your case.

You can find out more on our page about Time Limits on Claims.

Can I claim for a family member?

In the worst cases, negligent treatment can leave the patient with severe and lasting health problems. These can range from impaired mobility to decreased mental capacity and in the very worst cases, death.

Any of these outcomes can be deeply distressing for family members. Your physical or mental condition may leave you unable to work or even unable to ever return to your chosen profession, therefore, leaving you worse off financially or facing a long-term carer responsibility. Negligent treatment by doctors can impact the whole family, not just the patient.

If your family has been affected in this way or you are related to a patient who is unable to make a claim due to incapacity or any other reason, we want to help. We welcome all enquiries at Sheldon Davidson Solicitors, and we can help you to understand the options that are open to you as a relative making a compensation claim against a doctor or GP.

What can I claim?

A claim against your doctor for negligence can include claims relating to direct financial losses as well as compensation for physical injury, avoidable health outcomes and any trauma or distress you may have suffered.

Some examples of this can include:

• Compensation for pain & suffering caused
• Loss of earnings due to being unable to return to work.
• Costs for home care, physiotherapy treatment etc.
• Costs associated with fitting mobility aids to your property.
• Compensation for a chronic health condition or lasting impairment.

Claims can cover permanent damage to any part of your body, including muscle or nerve damage, loss of a limb or organ, and visible disfigurement. If you would like to know how much you can claim, please contact us.

We treat every case on its own merits and can give you an estimate of how much compensation you might receive for the different parts of your claim, as well as how likely you are to be successful.

How we support our clients through medical negligence claims.

We are proud to go the extra mile to support our clients. As experienced medical negligence solicitors, we know how upsetting your experience may be to you and your family. We will always listen supportively and sympathetically to what you have been through.

An understanding ear can be a valuable first step towards feeling better about your situation. We can help you to put things into perspective, even if you ultimately decide not to pursue a compensation claim with us.

If you do decide to make a claim, we will do everything we can to achieve success on your behalf. We work hard and diligently to prove that your treatment was negligent and to make sure you get the full amount of compensation you deserve.

Get in touch with Sheldon Davidson Solicitors

Please don't hesitate to contact Sheldon Davidson Solicitors if you would like to start a GP Negligence Claim or ask us anything about your circumstances.

We can help you to make important decisions and understand more about your claim, for example:

• Whether you should claim compensation from your family doctor.
• How likely you are to be successful in your compensation claim.
• How much compensation you can expect to receive.

Our Medical Negligence Solicitors will listen carefully to your circumstances and give you an honest and professional opinion of whether we think your claim will be successful, so you can make a fully informed decision about whether to proceed.

About Sheldon Davidson Solicitors

Sheldon Davidson Solicitors were established in 1997 and have become one of the most trusted and valued Personal Injury Law Firm & Medical Negligence Law Firms in Greater Manchester. Local residents turn to us time and time again for support in compensation claims, and we also represent clients nationwide.

Within the north-west, we work with claimants from across Greater Manchester, including Ashton, Bolton, Bury, Failsworth, Middleton, Oldham, Prestwich, Radcliffe, Rochdale and Whitefield, as well as further afield. No matter where you live in England and Wales we can help. We offer No Win, No Fee claims, which means you do not have to pay us if we are not successful in your case.

As a Lexcel accredited law firm, we are certified by the Law Society as meeting the highest standards of legal practice management and service to our clients. This means you can always be assured that a claim with Sheldon Davidson Solicitors in Manchester is a claim in safe hands.