A relation of mine has been offered a non negotiable offer of 35k by the nhs because of a blunder. Enough?

She was late with being diagnosed with cervical cancer, it was originally diagnosed as abrasions, and had ops to rectify, 18 months later they realise its a tumor, by this stage it was to big to operate, so several sessions of radiotherapy to cure which resulted in early menopause at age 26. Liabilityhas been admitted by them and eventually been offered 35k which is there non negotiable offer, she will have lasting effects from the radiotherapy and increased chances of breast cancer due to having hormone replacement tablets . she cannot have anymore children either which has left her with psychological damage. is it negotiable or should they be taken to court?

Speak to a good barrister. It won't be cheap, but it'll be worth it in the end. They will have a much better idea of the real level of compensation that can be acheived. Their non-negotiable offer is almost certain to be much lower than they would expect to be hit for in Court. You have to weigh this against the extended time it would take etc etc, but at very least I'm sure he could get that figure higher without the need to go to Court thereby keeping it as a quick, out of Court settlement.

On one hand it isnt enough, no amount of money could compensate for the pain, emotional and physical which she has been through and will endure till the end of her life.

On the other, cant see her getting much more, bite their hands off and take it and run!!!!

She should talk to a malpractice lawyer. Her injuries could be worth millions.

Call up Mr. Lawyer, these cases are so individual and medical law is waaaaay beyond me and, i suspect, beyond one or two others of us well meaning peeps on YA

You should seek the advice of a solicitor - quickly.
If the NHS have already offered a settlement, they are implicitly admitting guilt in this case. The only question is what amount the courts would consider to be a fair settlement, and would legal action be cost effective.

My sympathies are with you and your family.

Fellow cancer sufferer.

its a shame but going for more money would be selfish. It takes away from the pot that everyone else shares.

I would take them to court and also make sure the doctors and hospital are named and shamed to make sure it doesn'thappen to anyone else. What she needs to plan for is the future if the worst does happen and she does get breast cancer. She won't be able to go to work and the cost involved going to and from the hospital. 35k isn't anywhere near enough.

I am very sorry to hear about your relation - it's a terrible ordeal she has been through and obviously a continuing impact on her life.

I strongly suggest you consult a legal firm which specialises in medical negligence cases for their opinion. I have seen awards significantly higher than 拢35k, but it really does depend a lot on the circumstances, and if it goes to court awards vary a great deal.

losing the ability to have children at such a young age is worth a lot more than that.

My doctor got sued for the SAME thing - except he didn't admit liability, they just didn't have the same testing abilities as they do now. Her pap was normal, so he deduced it was lesions and cauterized them with a laser - which sped the process of the cancer. It was MANY MANY years ago and she won for a lot more than that. It was over 75K - he didn't tell me exactly how much.

From what I have been told, she was awarded a high amount because she lost the ability to have kids, and she was still young, and didn't already have kids.

For some reason courts reason that women who are older, or already have kids, aren't as "damaged" by the loss of the ability to have them. Stupid, but that's the way it is.

If she had already hired a lawyer, then most of that $35K will go toward his bill. What's left of 35K won't go very far if she is depressed and can't work and needs money to pay her bills.

She should not take the deal, and she should sue them for 100K.

non-negotiable my A S S!

Hello.You MUST, repeat MUST, see a solicitor with the UTMOST URGENCY. They want you to settle on the cheap and with the least amount the Health Authority can get away with. If you can't afford a solicitor, go to the Citizens Advice Bureau TOMORROW.

Alan L.

I think the first thing to do would be to take a look at what state you reside in and read what the malpractice maximums are in your state. Some states will award settlements to a certain maximum, where as other states have no cap on the amount that one can be sued. You should be able to go to your states website and just search for medical malpractice and it should populate. It will avoid a 15 minute charge by an attorney.

At that point then it would be up to the patient to determine whether or not it is worth it to her to proceed with a suit. Some patients want to take the money and are not willing to deal with the long drawn out process of a trial or mitigation. On the other hand, it is also up to her to decide whether or not the offer of 35K is worth it to her for her pain and suffering, and loss of child bearing. Another thing to consider is that if she does not have insurance for the Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy, that her medical bill could be in the amount of over 100K. If she does, then I would also ask for her co-pays and deductibles to be paid for as well. If she is going to psychotherapy for her emotional turmoil, I would also figure this into the amount as well.

Once all of this has been established and documented, I would then seek an attorney. You should be able to find one that will work for you and take your case, and only be paid a percentage of what you are awarded. Typically these lawyers are more willing to fight since they only get paid if you do too.

you cannot put a price on life

Sounds like professional legal advise has been sought already.
Your friends solicitor will know what are the chances of getting more if a court action was to be taken, also the down side should a court decide on a lesser sum.
On a personal note, there is not enough money in the world to compensate certain things but ask any solicitor there is a list of monies to be paid for these sort of things and solicitors and courts stick to them, they are mostly drawn up by insurance firms.
If however legal advice has not been sought, contact "The Law Society" who will put your friend in touch with a solicitor near to her who specialises in medical negligence cases

She's alive and no amount of money can compensate for psychological damage. So why sue for more money?

If she can put a monetary figure on the impacts of the radiotherapy, then she could compare that to the amount offered.

oh god no, it's never non-negotiable if you get a good barrister. i'd sue the hell out of them!

Given her age and the egregious malpractice attributed to her doctors, she needs to get an attorney ASAP. She will need a much larger settlement and they might be trying to frighten her into agreeing to this amount. NOTHING is "non-negotiable"; that is what they want her to believe so she'll accept their fast payoff.
This is far too serious and too important not to poursue every avenue, and the first thing you must do is find a lawyer who speialcizes in malpractice. A woman was in Home Deopt and dropped a pane of glass on her foot; she suffered some foot pain (no surgery, no stitches, etc) and was awarded four MILLION dollars...

whilst its possible that a court will not increase the amount by much (there was a case recently where a hospital was not fined much for death of a patient as they said it was just taking money away from other patients in need of nhs services). however i think the mistake needs to be publicised and accepting the offer will mean its hushed up. just depends whether she is prepared to go thru the trauma of court to expose this and hopefully stop it happening to anyone else and take a chance on getting more or if 35k is enough settling for this and getting on with her life. think i would want to make more of it and at least get an apology.

If liability has been admitted then you can go for any amount you want.
Go see a solicitor.