Here’s Everything You Need to Know About Hospital Aftercare
When you or a loved one falls ill unexpectedly, you need to know you’ll be properly taken care of. While the NHS is a generally fantastic service, there are times where you may feel let down by the level of care received.
Here, you’ll discover everything you need to know about hospital aftercare and what you can do if you don’t receive the level of care expected.
The information you’ll need to provide
When you or a loved one are admitted to hospital, there’s a lot of information you’ll potentially need to provide. This includes contact details, any prescribed medications the patient is taking, and any pre-existing conditions they may suffer with. You’ll also need to ensure they understand the patient’s wishes. For example, is there a DNAR order in place? This would mean if something were to happen, the patient doesn’t want to be resuscitated.
If there’s a power of attorney in place, and if the patient has any allergies or dietary requirements, this will also need to be communicated to the doctors and nurses. Failing to provide any of this information could result in the wrong type of care being administrated.
What type of treatment should you receive?
All medical staff have a duty of care to their patients. This means you should be treated with care and dignity. They will need to take all of the information you provided into account when coming up with effective treatment plans.
You should also be kept fully informed of your condition and treatment plan. If you have any specific wishes regarding your level of care, this will also need to be taken into account by the medical team.
Making a complaint
If you feel you haven’t been treated correctly and with the level of care required, it’s important to make a complaint. Many patients fail to do this but it’s crucial if you want to receive justice.
If you’ve submitted a complaint but nothing has been done, or you’re unhappy with how it has been handled, you can progress to a claim.
Advancing to a negligence claim
If you can prove that the level of aftercare you received was inadequate, you could open a hospital negligence claim. The majority of the time these claims don’t actually make it to court as hospitals prefer to settle outside the courtroom. However, you will still need a good lawyer just in case. It’s important to note that any negligence claims need to be filed within three years of the incident.
Overall, all patients should receive adequate care in hospital. If you feel that you’ve received a poor standard of care, there are steps you can take to receive justice as mentioned above.