Michael Lowry (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

In February of this year I raised the need for reform of the entire process surrounding medical negligence litigation. In general, when a person accesses the healthcare system, the reasonable expectation is that the care and treatment received will be provided by competent and qualified professionals. There is also an expectation that treatment will take place in a safe environment and that no unnecessary harm will come to the person. By and large, this expectation is realised but there are situations where unintentional complications can arise. Things can and do go wrong. If problems arise, the results can cause devastating emotional, and sometimes physical, consequences. These consequences can be life-changing. Ultimately, there is a strong possibility that the circumstances surrounding the events will lead to a claim for medical negligence.

Over the past ten years, damages paid by Irish hospitals in medical negligence claims have run to a whopping €1.8 billion, and they are rising rapidly. This escalation in the number of claims is disturbing and will be a major drain on the economy. If a person has suffered harm as a result of negligent treatment by a medical professional, he or she is entitled to be compensated for the suffering and impact it has caused. This is an unquestionable fact. The process of securing this compensation can and often does prove extremely arduous. The process is insufferable and agonising in a significant number of cases. According to a report from 2021, the adversarial nature of litigation makes the process conducive to "a protracted, contentious, emotionally draining and expensive legal battle".

Part of the reason for this is that the vast majority of people cannot undertake proceedings without legal supports. If you search online for information on medical negligence, you will find numerous pages of legal firms all claiming to offer the best possible advice and service to misfortunate patients. Once the patient enters legal doors, the protracted battle begins. Many of these cases drag on for years with mounting legal costs. The patients may win the case but at what cost financially and emotionally? Meanwhile, on the flip side, there is a medical professional who has a case hanging over his or her head, a dark cloud that hangs over him or her for the prolonged duration of the case. Due to the prevalence and fear of litigation we have reached a situation where many consultants are reluctant to make a surgical intervention in a borderline case.

By way of information, could the Minister advise if this compensation is coming from the HSE budget or the State Claims Agency? The most effective way to reduce and constrain soaring medical litigation is to invest in the health service. We should invest in accommodation, facilities, technology and staffing levels. We are spending millions on settling compensation claims because of neglect arising from understaffing, a lack of beds and a lack of facilities, which leads to overcrowding, delays and pressurised situations which result in human error.

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