Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Salaries and Other Compensation for Healthcare Workers in Canada

FROM CANADA'S ACADEMIC HEALTH SCIENCES CENTRES . . . AND MORE
Posted by Longwoods at 10:14 AM
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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I'm sorry to hear that your family friends have had this experience. Birthing is the highest risk area for complications, though I'm not sure seeking legal action will result in significant compensation, except to cover the cost of caring for a disabled child in situations of severe harm resulting from medical negligence. Generally, compensation is paid to in cases involving working age adults to cover the loss of potential income. Children aren't expected to earn income therefore, there essentially isn't a economic impact unless they require extra care, medicine or equipment. The first thing to do is establish whether there has been negligence. I would suggest that your friend request a copy of the chart. As a parent, they have a right to a copy of the complete chart, including doctor's notes. (caution them NOT to mention that they may be seeking compensation or taking legal action). Then ask a lawyer to refer them to someone who handles these types of claims. Unfortunately, the way the healthcare system is set up today it aims to protect the hospital insurer from having to pay out compensation, rather than easig the pain or suffering of the patient / family, or promoting harm reduction / quality improvement (let alone, apologize!) Only incidents where there has been death or serious injury does a "critical incident review" take place, and the parents are generally not privy to the outcome or recommendations made to resolve a break in the standards of practice, communication or care delivery. But if the complications were serious, that your friends could request a review take place to ensure that the hospital / clinic is taking action to prevent a similar incident from recurring to someone else for peace of mind. Here's a link to a document that offers definitions on the types of liability. http://www.canadianmidwives.org/pdf/2007_HIROC_Eng.pdf
Good luck and I hope it turns out well for all involved.

April 18, 2008 at 5:16 PM

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