The role of a Case Manager in a medical negligence claim
Our clinical negligence team deal with a number of claims where a Case Manager is appointed when interim compensation payments have been received from the Defendant. This normally occurs on a higher value claim such as a birth injury or catastrophic claims.
Kerry Fifield, partner and AvMA and Law Society clinical negligence panel manager considers the role of a Case Manager when dealing with a claim:
What is a Case Manager?
A Case Manager is often a person instructed by you, your solicitor or your deputy (if the case is managed by Court of Protection) to assist with the day to day support you require as a result of an injury sustained. They will work with you and your family to put to identify and place suitable care and therapy and will report to your solicitor and/or deputy, if applicable.
The Case Manager is often a qualified nurse, occupational therapist or physiotherapist.
Will the cost of a Case Manager reduce mine of my child’s damages?
No, we can only recover Case Management costs in addition to other losses or expenses if you instruct a Case Manager, if you do not instruct one that head of loss falls away from the claim. Financial losses in any claim are calculated based on what has been incurred in the past and what is likely to be incurred in the future. If you decide not to instruct a Case Manager during the litigation it may be difficult to justify this as an expense in the future.
The care expert in the claim will advise if a Case Manager is appropriate and what the annual cost of the Case Manager is likely to be. The cost of the Case Manager is recovered from the Defendant in the same way as therapy or equipment costs.
Why is it beneficial to have a Case Manager?
The Case Manager can co-ordinate all your rehabilitation and care and save you or another family member a significant amount of time. If you or a child have sustained a significant injury through no fault of your own you are likely to need to attend a number of medical appointments, a care package may be to be put in place and you may require a number of private therapists, the Case Manager can take over the management of the support you require to free up your time so that you can concentrate on your own recovery or looking after your child or the needs of the rest of your family.
The Case Managers appointed on a case are normally chosen because they have experience of dealing with the type of injury you have sustained. They will often have a useful resource network that you can be used for your benefit, i.e. they may know a good physiotherapist or where is the best local place to have hydrotherapy, or they may know which care agencies to use if they have used them on other cases.
Can I change Case Manager once instructed?
Yes, if the relationship is not working or you have concerns during the course of the litigation you can change to a different Case Manager, your solicitor or appointed deputy would be able to arrange this for you.
How often will I need to see my Case Manager?
That depends on the extent of the support/care and therapy required. If you or a family member require a full care package and significant amount of therapy there will be a lot of initial contact with the Case Manager. Once the care package or support has been put in place the contact with the Case Manager would still be ongoing, but probably less than in the initial stages. If you only need some therapy for specific injury the contact and meetings are likely to be less often. The care expert will be able to provide an indication of how much contact there is likely to be with the Case Manager.
Speak to an expert
If you require advice about a clinical negligence or serious injury claim please do not hesitate to contact the Clarke Willmott team on 0800 316 8892 or by requesting a consultation.
