Healthcare Worker Injury – A Guide to Claiming Compensation

Healthcare workers can face many different types of hazards and dangers in the workplace. As employers have a duty to try and keep their staff as safe as possible while working, healthcare workers who are injured at work could be entitled to claim compensation for their suffering. This guide explores how healthcare worker injury claims work and how to build a strong case.

We can help you begin your claim, whether you’re a private or NHS healthcare worker. During a free initial consultation, one of our specialists will review your case and answer as many of your questions as possible. After reviewing the evidence, your advisor could connect you with one of our accident at work solicitors if they believe your claim is feasible. If it proceeds, you won’t pay for your solicitor’s work unless you are compensated because of their No Win, No Fee service.

If you’re employed in the healthcare industry and have been hurt at work, you can:

• Call us on 0333 241 2519 for an advisor to review your case for free.
• Use our free online chat service (available 24 hours a day).

Please continue reading for more on injured healthcare worker claims, or give us a call with any questions.

Can I Make a Healthcare Worker Injury Claim?

Legally, hospitals, NHS trusts, GP surgeries, and other employers of healthcare workers have a duty to try and protect the welfare of their staff. This duty is established by laws such as the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

Some of the ways employers could try to protect healthcare workers include:

• Providing adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) where required.
• Training healthcare workers on how to do their job safely, i.e. how to handle sharps safely.
• Ensuring staff aren’t tired because they’ve worked too many shifts.
• Providing equipment that is fit for purpose and in good working order.
• Maintaining high hygiene standards in medical facilities.
• Conducting regular risk assessments in the workplace.

Injured healthcare workers could be entitled to claim compensation if they can show that:

1. At the point you were injured, your employer owed you a duty of care.
2. Because of your employer’s negligence, that duty was breached.
3. That breach resulted in your injury.

The same criteria apply to private or NHS healthcare worker injury claims.

What Types of Negligence Can Lead to a Healthcare Worker Injury?

A few examples of negligence in the healthcare industry that could lead to accident at work claims are:

• A nurse slipped on a recently cleaned floor in a hospital and broke an ankle because of a lack of warning signs.
• Where a consultant suffered psychological suffering after suffering a needlestick injury because sharps were left lying around in a hospital ward.
• A doctor was assaulted at work by a patient and sustained a broken nose due to a lack of security staff.
• Where a care worker sustained a back injury at work while trying to move a patient because they’d not received proper training.

Whether your accident or injury is listed here or not, please get in touch to see if you could be entitled to start a healthcare worker injury claim.

What Should I Do If I’m a Healthcare Worker Injured at Work?

If you are injured at work, some of the steps you may need to take to support your claim include:

• Report the workplace accident to your immediate supervisor as soon as you can.
• Ensure all injuries are assessed and treated.
• Ask for the accident to be logged in an accident book.
• Participate in any investigation that takes place.

These steps can also help your employer prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.

What Evidence Can Be Used for Healthcare Worker Injury Claims?

Proving your version of events is vital if you’re to receive compensation for injuries sustained at work. The types of evidence that may help in a healthcare worker injury claim include:

• Details of any witnesses (patients, colleagues or visitors).
• CCTV or bodycam footage of the accident occurring.
• Photographs of any issues or defects that led to your accident.
• Your copy of an accident report form that proves when and where you were injured.
• Copies of your medical records to help prove your injuries.
• Pictures of any visible bruising, swelling, cuts or abrasions.
• A personal statement explaining how the accident occurred.

Other evidence may also be helpful. For instance, if your claim is taken on, your accident-at-work solicitor may contact your employer or the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to request a copy of an investigation report where available.

We are happy to review any evidence you’ve already collected as part of a free initial consultation, so please feel free to get in touch.

How Long Do I Have to Claim Healthcare Worker Injury Compensation?

As you may know, the Limitation Act 1980 prescribes a 3-year time limit for most personal injury claims in the UK. In healthcare worker claims, the 3 years will normally start from the date of the workplace accident, although this can vary in certain situations. Consequently, you should seek advice based on your own circumstances.

As there is much work to do before your claim is filed, we suggest it’s better to begin the process without delay. If a claim is made outside of the 3-year limitation period, it could mean you’d miss out on any compensation you are entitled to.

How Much Compensation for Healthcare Worker Injuries?

As you might expect, compensation levels in successful healthcare injury claims vary from case to case. If your claim is won, your compensation will normally cover any pain and suffering you’ve endured (including psychological trauma) plus any financial losses.

To value your injuries, an independent medical report will usually be requested by your solicitor. This will allow them to confirm how much suffering you have dealt with and whether it will continue in the future.

Any compensation you receive could also cover any costs, expenses or other financial losses linked to your injuries, including:

• Treatment and rehabilitation costs.
• The cost of adapting your home so that you’ll find it easier to cope with any permanent disability.
• Care and support costs.
• Lost income.
• Travel expenses.
• Any future reduction in your earnings.

Your solicitor will go through everything with a fine-toothed comb so that any compensation you receive covers all aspects of your suffering.

Can Agency Staff Claim Compensation for Work-Related Injuries?

Many healthcare providers use agency staff to fill employment quotas where needed. As such, it’s important to point out that agency workers can expect the same level of care when it comes to workplace health and safety as other staff.

That means that if you are a healthcare agency worker, we could help you claim compensation for any injuries caused by your employer’s negligence.

Do You Need a Solicitor for a Work Injury Claim?

When making a work injury claim, there might be lots of complex medical and legal evidence to deal with. For that reason, you may wish to hire a specialist solicitor who understands the claims process and who can help you to put together as strong a case as possible.

Some of the services provided by solicitors on our team when helping with injured healthcare worker claims include:

• Finding evidence to support your case.
• Dealing with your employer’s insurers or lawyers on your behalf.
• Ensuring that the claim is filed correctly and on time.
• Sending regular updates so that you are aware of how your claim is progressing.
• Negotiating on your behalf to try and ensure that any compensation offer is fair and covers all of your suffering.

Crucially, your solicitor’s work won’t need to be paid for upfront as all accepted healthcare worker claims are processed on a No Win, No Fee basis. That means that once you’ve signed a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), your solicitor will only be paid for their efforts if compensation is paid.

Please call now to see if you could be entitled to make a No Win, No Fee healthcare worker injury claim.

Will I Be Sacked for Claiming Against My Employer?

It can be a concern to some employees that there will be friction at work if they make a personal injury claim against their employer. However, this should not happen because there are legal guidelines in place to protect employee rights following a workplace accident.

As such, if you file an honest healthcare worker claim, your employer should not fire you, demote you, bully you, single you out or treat you any differently because of your claim. If you were to face such actions, you could have separate grounds to seek compensation for unfair or constructive dismissal as well.

How Long Will the Claims Process Take?

We can’t say exactly how long your case will take to be resolved because several factors can impact the claims process. For instance, you might be paid compensation for a broken leg within a matter of 5 or 6 months if your injuries have healed quickly and your employer admitted blame early on.

Conversely, if you have sustained a damaged spine and your mobility is still affected, your claim could go beyond a year, and more. This would be because it may take longer for healthcare professionals to determine how long you are likely to suffer and how your life will be affected by your ongoing symptoms. In these longer-term claims, interim compensation could be paid to help you financially, i.e. to cover loss of earnings or care costs.

Contacting Us About a Healthcare Worker Injury Claim

If you’re looking at starting a healthcare worker injury claim and you’d like some expert advice, you can:

• Call us on 0333 241 2519 to discuss your claim with a specialist advisor.
• Connect to our 24/7 live chat service.

We offer free legal advice to all callers as part of our no-obligation initial consultation service. If your claim does appear feasible and you would like to proceed with legal action, we could partner you with an accident-at-work solicitor. Crucially, they offer a No Win, No Fee service for all healthcare worker compensation claims that they agree to work on.