Cautionary tales
Section 1:Diagnosis delays 12
The following 25 cases provide an insight into the
wide variety of advice line dilemmas, claims and
Section 2:Confidentiality conundrums 18
complaints where the MDU has assisted medical
and dental members.
Section 3:Medical records 24
They illustrate the type of cases in which our
medico and dento-legal, claims handlers and solicitors
Section 4:Treatment issues 26
support members. Many of these scenarios will be
completely new to the doctor or dentist involved, but
Section 5:Complaints 30
only too familiar to the MDU’s advisers who can provide
expert help and assistance. The cases range from an
allegation against a GP of failing to diagnose chicken
Section 6:Mental capacity 32 pox in a child who later died (page 15) to a query from
a consultant with concerns about whether he should
Section 7:Dental dilemmas 34
disclose a patient’s medical condition to the Civil Aviation
Authority, when the patient claimed to be an airline pilot
(page 20).
Many of the problems highlighted were resolved
following advice from one of the MDU’s medico or
dento-legal advisers, such as the dentist responding to
a complaint from the mother of a teenage boy who was
turned away for treatment by a receptionist who
believed he was too young to consent to treatment
(page 36). Others were more complicated and lengthy to
resolve such as a claim against a GP member for failing to
diagnose hypothyroidism in a patient seen ten years
earlier, which reached the High Court.
We appreciate that members might feel a sense of dread
when reading these cases or that they could easily occupy
the shoes of the professional involved. However, we
hope that these cases will also provide the peace of mind
that if something does go wrong in your clinical practice,
the MDU is in your corner.
Our intention in publishing these cases is not only to
show how the MDU has helped members, but also to
shed light on dealing with common dilemmas in medical
and dental practice. Some learning points arise from the
cases, which cover issues such as confidentiality, diagnosis
delays and complaints. These include the importance of:
• keeping accurate, detailed and contemporaneous
records of contact with patients;
• having systems in place to track test results and
referrals;
• reviewing patients on long-term medication;
• taking action where a patient’s symptoms fail to
improve; and
• ensuring that patient’s are fully informed about the
risks and benefits of treatment, as well as any
alternatives.
We hope you will enjoy reading these cautionary
tales and that you also find them informative and
reassuring.
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