Are the NHS Learning from Mistakes?

I recently wrote a blog about the Daniel Ubani case. He was the German surgeon who came over to the UK to do a GP out of hours shift and ended up killing a patient by prescribing a huge amount of the drug diamorphine. This was a very sad case, but it was hoped that the media prominence of the events would ensure that reforms were brought in and that this tragedy was never repeated.

However, on the 12^th of August, the Guardian newspaper published figures from the NHS that they had obtained under a Freedom of Information request. These are extremely disturbing. They noted that, in less than a year, health workers made 1,300 errors related to opiate analgesics. These resulted in 2 patients suffering “severe” harm and 3 patients actually dying.

In addition, the report revealed that two other GPs working for the same company as Dr Ubani , the ironically named ‘Take Care Now’, had also been involved in errors related to diamorphine prescribing. Fortunately, these events were not fatal.

Clearly, lessons have not yet been learned, despite the serious consequences. One positive is that these events are now being recorded as opposed to being swept under the carpet. Linda Hutchinson, Director of the Care Quality Commission, noted:

“The increase in reporting is a good thing. We often find it is the NHS trusts reporting a high number of incidents that are doing a better job of investigating them and taking action to prevent them happening again.”

However, it is clear that, at least on a national level, lessons have not yet been learned. As opiates are prescribed more frequently in our ageing population, it suggests that, unless serious measures are taken, even more deaths may result from these preventable prescribing errors.

If you have been affected by a prescribing error you may be able to obtain compensation for your suffering. We would suggest that you contact a specialist solicitors to discuss a potential claim.