Patient Safety Initiative Review

Patient safety initiatives have the power to reshape healthcare for patients and legal accountability for the healthcare provider.

As a medical negligence lawyer, when people come to me with concerns over the care they have received, the answer is not always immediately investigate a civil claim against the healthcare provider. It can be guiding them in making a complaint so they can better understand the care they or their loved one has received and why certain decisions were made. Often, during the complaints process, the healthcare provider will come back to outline what additional training or reviews of patient safety initiatives will take place as a result of the investigation, which often reassures the patient that the failures in care they encountered do not happen to anyone else.

Nationally, there have been two significant developments over the last two years which represent crucial steps forward in empowering patients and families when concerns arise about deteriorating health. Martha’s Rule gives patients and families the opportunity to request an urgent review from a separate medical team if they’re worried about a patient’s condition. Jess’s Rule is intended to encourage GPs to “think again” if they see a patient three times with no clear diagnosis or worsening symptoms.

These ‘Rules’ shift patients’ feelings that they are suffering with ongoing health issues with no resolution or investigation and no way forward, or in the case of patients in Hospital, a request for a fresh eyes review of the symptoms, to a listening and action. The impact of these Rules moves patient care to a more collaborative model.

The Rules should empower patients to escalate unresolved concerns or request independent reviews, rather than leaving them feeling at the mercy of a healthcare system that is not listening to them.

The impact of Jess’s Rule, particularly, is likely to place additional pressure on the NHS with an increased need for secondary care and administration to manage this, but with the benefit that early referral for investigation of unresolved ongoing symptoms will free up repeat appointments with GPs and catch serious conditions early for management rather than acute intervention.

Martha’s Rule and Jess’s Rule address a critical patient safety gap, turning missed opportunities and loss of life into positive NHS system improvements that will ultimately benefit everyone.

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