Legal claims in Scottish National Health Service Dermatology Departments 1989-2001

Abstract

Given the numbers of patients seen annually at Scottish NHS Hospital Dermatology units the absolute number of claims is low. Five main areas within dermatology were highlighted as at risk of litigation and this has implications for all U.K. dermatology departments with regard to funding, staff training and patient information and consent.

Legal claims in English dermatological practice

“…15·7 cases per year, compared with Scottish dermatology NHS data (1989–2001) which reported 30 claims over a 12‐year period, i.e. 2·5 claims annually 2 . However, when the data are corrected for population size (Scotland 5·2 million, England 51·4 million from mid‐2008 estimates) then there are 6·3 times as many legal claims in England compared with Scotland, although England has 9·9 times the population of Scotland 3 .…”

Surgical treatment of melanoma

“…However, referral to ordinary clinics or to surgical clinics without a specialized accelerated referral system may lead to a delay in treatment 28 . It is also interesting to note that dermatology is a specialty which has a low incidence of litigation brought against it and, in a 20‐year period in Scotland, no litigation has resulted from misdiagnosis of melanoma 29 …”

Dermatological legal claims in Japan

“…On the other hand, Drummond et al. summarized 30 dermatology claims during the period 1989–2001 in Scotland 17 . According to their data, phototherapy claims involved burning episodes following treatment with ultraviolet (UV)‐B or psoralen plus UV‐A (PUVA), and pharmacology claims were the major suits.…”