More than £40 million in out-of-court settlements for damages and legal costs was paid to United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust patients and families between 2018 and 2020.
The Lincolnite submitted a Freedom of Information request to the four hospital trusts in Greater Lincolnshire asking for the number of court and out-of-court settlements between 2018 and 2020.
The data provided was for out-of-court settlements. Fewer than five cases went to court, therefore NHS Resolution did not provide in-court data.
The data for United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust (ULHT), which runs hospitals in Lincoln, Boston and Grantham, was provided by NHS Resolution for the financial years of 2018/19 and 2019/20.
Some 118 claims amounting to £16,284,524 in damages and legal costs were paid out in 2018/19. During the same period 45 claims were unsuccessful, but legal costs of £125,271 still needed to be processed.
In 2019/20, £23,554,516 was paid out for 125 claims. There were 33 unsuccessful claims during that period, but £153,312 still had to be paid out in legal costs.
The most common reasons patients were offered financial settlements included failures or delays to treatment, failure or delay of diagnosis and ‘intra-op problems’.
There were other rare instances including claimants being ‘hit by an object’ and inadequate nursing care.
When the 118 claims for 2018/19 were broken down by injury, 21 were listed as ‘unnecessary pain’, 17 were for orthopaedic injuries, 17 for fatality and 16 for additional or unnecessary operations.
Of the 125 claims for 2019/20, unnecessary pain was again the highest, with 36 claims. There was also a further 14 for fatalities.
Paul Matthew, ULHT’s Director of Finance and Digital, said: “ULHT is one of the biggest trusts in the country, treating a large number of patients.
“There is a rising trend of compensation claims nationally and every NHS Trust pays an annual contribution into the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts which is administered by an organisation called the NHS Resolution.
“This contribution is similar to an insurance premium, the value is calculated by the NHS Resolution and they settle all claims on behalf of ULHT. Therefore any funds paid out in litigation cases are not paid by ULHT.
“We aim to provide the best quality care to each and every one of our patients. Where mistakes may have occurred, the Trust uses this as an opportunity to learn lessons and improve the quality of care for our patients.”
Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust
Over £34 million in damages and more than £13.7 million in legal costs were paid to Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust’s patients and families between 2018 and 2020. The trust runs hospitals in Grimsby, Scunthorpe and Goole.
This money paid out is broken down as follows:
2018 – £11,975,980, plus legal costs of £6,098,311
2019 – £14,746,513, plus legal costs of £4,383,917
2020 – £7,284,982, plus legal costs of £3,315,603
A pie chart showing the areas Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust had to pay damages/legal costs out for between 2018 and 2020.
The most common areas paid out for during that period were failure/delay diagnosis, fail/delay treatment and inadequate nursing care.
Dr Kate Wood, medical director at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Unfortunately, there are times when things go wrong, and when this happens it is important for us that as a Trust to do everything we can to put things right.
“Part of this process is settling damages to fairly reflect the consequences this has had on our patients and their families. However, this is only one part of a much bigger picture; as a Trust we are committed to learning from our mistakes to ensure that they are not repeated.”
Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust specialises in mental health services and 10 claims for Clinical Negligence totalling £9,453,263.20 were paid out to its patients in 2018.
In 2019, £484,411.67 was paid out for four claims of Personal Injury. A further three claims for Personal Injury were paid out for in 2020, totalling £7,713.79.
Sarah Connery, acting Chief Executive of the trust, said: “We have a duty of care to our patients to keep them safe. Where this regrettably falls below the standards we expect and causes harm, it is important that we fairly compensate our patients, and/or their dependents appropriately.
“Sadly, on occasion for a number of reasons this can have a lifelong impact on someone’s health and income, and as such we ensure fair compensation for any losses. Fortunately, patients experiencing harm is rare, but in some cases require significant compensation. The figures in the last few years have included one unusually high payment and in normal years are much lower.
“Where incidents of harm, or near misses occur we work closely with service users, carers and their family to learn lessons and reduce the likelihood of incidents occurring in the future.”
Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust
The FOI response relating to Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust stated that “statistical data which relate to fewer than five people could lead to the identification of individuals – especially when coupled with information already in the public domain” so this information is considered to be “exempt from disclosure”.
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Anglian Water has “a lot to answer for” after a long-running sinkhole debacle, Holbeach’s MP has claimed.
Nearly £500,000 has been spent over the last three years by various authorities attempting to repair the hole on Boston Road South.
People whose lives had been disrupted demanded answers from the water company and council at a town meeting on Wednesday evening.
The delayed sewer works have now been completed, and the road repairs are currently expected to be completed by Friday, August 26.
Most of the anger was directed against Anglian Water for not keeping people informed of what was happening.
Sir John Hayes, MP for South Holland and the Deepings, said: “There has been a breakdown between Lincolnshire County Council. Local people have been put out. Anglian Water have a lot to answer for,” he said.
“It is not acceptable that the people I represent have had to have this since 2019. This cost is our money.
Problems have persisted on Boston Road South for years | Photo: The Lincolnite
“It is not acceptable people not knowing what is happening next. There is also the noise which is affecting people’s lives.
“Only Lincolnshire County Council are taking responsibility and not Anglian Water. People will know who to hold accountable.”
He also called for people to be compensated for their trouble as a gesture of goodwill.
Anglian Water said they were very sorry for not communicating better, and claimed that they had been working closely with the council to fix the problems.
A spokesperson said they would look into compensation.
One resident told the meeting that they hadn’t been informed about recent roadworks, and hadn’t been able to get off their drive for work on Monday.
Lincolnshire County Council apologised for not dropping letters off to all houses affected.
Questions also revealed that tankers full of sewage and storm water were being taken away from the sinkhole daily.
Anglian Water has spent approximately £350,000 trying to rectify the problem, and another £115,000 has come from Lincolnshire County Council.
The road repairs were pushed back from July 4 after Anglian Water said that more time was needed to repair the sewer.
A former pub in Boston will be merged with a neighbouring building to create larger residential home.
Plans have been granted for a new use for the Red Cow Hotel on Wide Bargate.
The pub has had a turbulent history recently, briefly closing and reopening in 2014, before shutting again shortly after.
Planning documents say it’s fallen into a poor sate of repair. However, applicant SHWilkinson Architects Ltd is now working to bring it back into good condition.
Boston Borough Council has granted permission to build a two-storey extension to link it with the Georgians, an 18th century townhouse used as a care home for the elderly.
The extension will be set back from the road so it doesn’t detract from the historic architecture.
Artists impressions show what the larger, combined care home would look like.
The extended care home on Wide Bargate, Boston Photo: SHWilkinson
The recently-approved application states: “The link will allow both buildings to operate under a combined management and staffing rather than two independent staffing units, were they kept separate.”
It adds that the plans are an “opportunity to bring the derelict and deteriorating building back into use and to address localised issues with vermin appearance.”
The buildings’ external features will be restored and replaced where needed.