This article is published as part of Capsticks’ Medical Malpractice and Casualty Forward View 2023.

The private sector is using technology to assist the NHS with post-Covid-19 waiting lists and wider resource issues. Whenever technology is used healthcare professionals need to ensure that patients are selected and consented appropriately and staff are trained and assessed as competent to use the system.

In the NHS, the roll–out of virtual wards remains high on the agenda. A key risk area for healthcare professionals using this system is the triggering of ‘red flags’ and subsequent decision-making i.e. does a patient need to be recalled to a formal care setting?

MedTech companies will need a robust system for monitoring software performance in these scenarios – for example, there is scope for a ‘virtual ward’ patient harmed by failure to recall to claim against the software supplier as well as the NHS Trust, if there are software performance issues.

Investment in Augmented Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) looks set to continue which will mean greater opportunities for MedTech companies but also more insurable risk.

Medical Malpractice and Casualty Forward View 2023

This article is part of Capsticks’ Medical Malpractice and Casualty Forward View 2023.

Read the other articles featured in this publication below:

• Spotlight on three appeal court decisions to look out for in 2023
• Concussion in sport: the next industrial disease claim?
• Courts will continue to take a robust approach to fraud, but defendants should be rigorous when assessing the strength of their case
• Private surgeons could face Covid-19 related claims
• Covid-19 public inquiry: private hospitals may face requests for statements and documents
• Government prepares for Personal Injury Discount Rate (PIDR) review
• There could be an increase in the cost of care claims, but a decrease in the cost of accommodation claims
• New legislation may mean more clinical trials, but ‘lighter touch’ regulation and some simplified procedures
• Legal liabilities for transport of the future: e-scooters and self-driving vehicles
• Fixed recoverable costs (FRCs) – timetable delayed
• Civil Procedure Rules Committee (CPRC) may be the bearer of good news for defendants

Get in touch

Aiming to be the firm of choice for medical malpractice and casualty insurers, we advise and support on all aspect of claims and inquests.

To discuss how any of these issues may affect your organisation, please get in touch with Majid Hassan or Chery Blundell.