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Medication Errors in the Treatment of Children
A report prepared by the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) has revealed an alarming number of medical errors occurring in the treatment of children and babies in our hospitals.
In a one year period, the researchers found that over 60,000 children were exposed to clinical mistakes, the majority of which were cases where the patient was administrated with an incorrect dose of medication or where no medication was provided at all. Medication errors are particularly worrying as they can have very grave effects for the patient. The research by the NPSA found that 33 children and 39 babies under one year died following provision of an incorrect dose of medication.
The NPSA have urged drug companies to begin to manufacture medications in child doses as well as adult doses in the hope that fewer administrational errors can be made. When dealing with such a small body mass, a slight increase in medication can cause disastrous consequences. It is therefore extremely important that prescribed doses are checked and checked again.
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So you have been to the hairdressers expecting to come out with brilliant results, and you expect to be fully satisfied. However, something went wrong and you really don’t know what to do about it and you’re a little confused as to why it’s happened. You went into the hairdressers expecting it to be a simple and straightforward process. After all, everyone goes to the hairdressers; surely it’s an easy enough process to have something like your hair dyed when you are in the hands of a “professional”.
Anyone who has happened to suffer in the hands of a hairdresser is far from alone. Hair dressing problems are much more common than people realise and the majority of the time the issues occur as a result of poor techniques or incompetence on the hair dressers part. Hairdressing is a profession that is actually by far under regulated in this country.
The chemicals used for bleaching, straightening, colouring and perming hair all consist of very strong substances, which if used incorrectly can go very wrong indeed – often leading to burns, hair loss and in very severe cases, permanent damage. There are also risks with hair extensions if they are misused leading to semi permanent and even permanent damage. Also, dermatitis through contact is fifteen times higher than the national average.
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First Official UK Workers Memorial Day for Victims of Accident’s At Work
On 28th April 2010 people all over the country gathered at events, rallies and services to mark the UK’s first officially recognized Workers Memorial Day which is held in memory and recognition of all the people who have been killed or suffered injuries in accidents at work.
Every year hundreds of thousands of people all over the world are killed or injured in accidents at work due to poor health and safety standards in the work place and the negligence of employers. Support for Workers Memorial Day has grown in recent years and is already recognized and supported by many other countries throughout the world. This year is the first in which the UK will officially recognize Workers Memorial Day and it is hoped that official recognition will increase awareness further and lead to greater improvements in health and safety standards in the workplace. A member of safety group Hazards Campaign stated that “every year more people are killed at work than in war. Most do not die of mystery ailments or in tragic accidents. They die because an employer decided their safety just wasn’t a priority”.
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Maradona Bitten in Face By Dog
Football legend and current Argentina world cup coach Diego Maradona has undergone surgery after being attacked by a dog. The dog, believed to be Maradona’s own pet, bit him on the face leaving him requiring 10 stitches.
The number of dog bites in the UK is increasing every year with NHS figures showing that there were over 3,500 attacks by dogs in 2008 ranging from minor bites and scratches to serious wounds and in some cases even death. Many attacks are now being attributed to non-illegal breeds and family pets and the RSPCA has stated that the Dangerous Dogs Act now needs to be changed to try and curb the increase in attacks which has actually tripled since the act came into force in 1991.
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In today’s society it is encouraged that we exercise more and avoid using our cars where possible to reduce our carbon foot print. Many people make good use of bicycles, using them as an alternative means of transport to and from work and also simply for recreational purposes. It’s a brilliant method of getting out and about in the open. Whilst there are many plus sides to using bikes, they come with their disadvantages especially; for pedestrians it seems.
The statistics for injuries to pedestrians is higher than you may think. In 2009 the government released figures showing the cases of people injured due to bicycles (source). Pedestrians are 263 times more likely to be injured by a motor vehicle than they are with a bike. Over the past ten years figures show that 29 people were killed by bicycles and 7,600 were killed by motor vehicles. 364,000 people were injured by motor vehicles, 76,000 of those people being seriously injured and just over 2,600 people were harmed by bicycles.
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To Go Local, Or Not To Go Local…
And the answer is… It’s completely up to you!
It’s a big question! And it’s one you might ask as part of your decision making process when it comes to who you want to represent you for your claim for compensation. But to be honest, it doesn’t really matter if you choose a solicitor miles and miles away from you! And here’s why:
The claims process involves us specialist lawyers dealing with a lot of third parties; and they really are dotted all over the country! Firstly, are the defendants’ insurers. They may be anywhere in the country – it’s usually completely dependent on who they are insured with! A lot of the larger companies have main offices dotted all over the place, so in dealing with them – us solicitors will be corresponding with them by phone, email, fax and post.
And if the claim needs to be fought a little harder, then it’s likely the insurers will nominate solicitors to act on their behalf. And again, their solicitors could be anywhere around the country; again it’s completely dependent on who their solicitors are.
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An increasing number of women are choosing home birth, the perception being that it is safer, cleaner and a better birthing experience. In some circumstances this can be true and after careful consideration by a doctor or a midwife this service can be offered through the NHS. However, some women are turning away from the perceived failures of the NHS and putting their trust into independent midwives.
Whilst some women are getting the experience they hoped for, others are not. In one recent high profile case, the independent midwife who delivered J K Rowling’s two children recorded a high foetal heart rate of 190 beats per minute, over 30 beats over the accepted safe rate, and yet failed to act upon this result. Instead, she continued with labour as normal and only checked the heart rate again after another hour had passed. Eventually, having recorded a dangerously high foetal heart rate on 5 occasions and realising the baby was in the wrong position, an ambulance was called for and the independent midwife then left the mother to wait for the arrival of the paramedics alone.
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Common accidents these; especially in industries such as construction, or jobs with a great deal of manual handling. But whether you’ve tripped on some plastic tie-wrapping in the warehouse, or the scaffolding at the building site was not secure when you walked over it and your legs in a cast now, we specialist injury lawyers are here to help you! So how does it work?
Insurance
Its more than likely that your employers have an insurance policy in place to cover their employees in case they sustain an injury at work! Usually it’s referred to as an employers liability insurance policy – and it’s there to be used in case you ever need to claim from your boss for damages! So you should feel free to claim from it if you’ve been injured in an accident that was not your fault!
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Holidays from Hell – & the £5m Claim Against First Choice!
Accidents abroad – so how do they work? You may or may not know that most of us specialist personal injury solicitors can only really deal with claims in the UK – but we can in the majority of instances deal with accidents abroad on holidays! So how does it work?
Well, if you have an accident abroad on holiday, which was booked through a package holiday, and the accident occurred on premises inclusive on the package, or perhaps during an activity included or related to the package, then you can in most cases actually claim against the package holiday provider!
Its covered under (see if you can guess the name!) The Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992 (www.opsi.gov.uk), and it’s a key pieces of legislation us lawyers need when it comes to pursuing this type of claim on behalf of the client.
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Had an Accident? Who You Gonna Call?
Certainly not one for the Ghostbusters! But when you’ve had an accident and you want to claim for the compensation you are legally entitled to recover, or you want advice on claiming, it’s an important question to ask. Who should you call? Well that’s completely up to you…
So you want to claim or you need advice – decisions decisions! There’s so many companies out there offering you so much; it’s a hard decision to make – probably as hard as deciding who I’m going to vote for in the election this year! So here’s a list of things you should tick off as part of the decision making process!
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