30,000 people were given infected blood products or transfusions over the course of 20 years.
Why is the Infected Blood Scandal in the news this week?
You’ll have no doubt seen the “Infected Blood Scandal” making headlines this week, after the publishing of Sir Brian Langstaff’s report highlighting that more than 30,000 people received infected blood products or transfusions between the 1970’s and the early-1990’s.
The two main groups of people who were impacted by the infected blood were people with haemophilia or similar rare genetic disorders that prevented their blood from clotting and people who had a blood transfusion following child birth, an accident or during a medical treatment.
3,000 of those victims have since died and countless more have experienced life-changing and life-shortening conditions as a result of the blood they were given.
The government is currently creating a plan to provide compensation to surviving victims and the families of victims, who have spent decades fighting for the action that is now being taken and the scandal has been acknowledged in parliament as a failure of the public health system and a failure of all political parties. It was also revealed that deliberate attempts to conceal the scandal had occurred over the last 50 years, including the destruction of documents by Whitehall officials.
When medical negligence occurs, the consequences can often be life-changing for victims and families involved. This scandal represents one of the largest and most extreme examples of medical negligence we are likely to witness in this country and it illustrates the worst-case example of what can happen when patients are let down by the NHS and medical professionals that they have put their trust in.
However, as proved this week, when medical negligence occurs then there are things that can be done and it is absolutely imperative to investigate further and hold responsible parties accountable.
The government is reportedly expecting to pay out more than £10billion in compensation payments in the very near future and, while the money will not pacify the grief experienced by those impacted and by those who sadly lost their lives, it does offer the families and the victims the resources to make changes in their lives going forward to try and navigate the most unthinkable circumstances that they have experienced.
To learn more about Medical Negligence and what options you have when it occurs, please click here.
Or if you believe you have experienced Medical Negligence and would like to tell your story to a member of our team, please call 0800 118 1500.