What You Need to Know About Pressure Sore Claims
When receiving treatment or care in a hospital, nursing home or even at your own home, the standard provided by the medical professionals should be second to none. Sadly, all too often, below par care can result in avoidable injuries such as pressure sores.
The provision of adequate care and the correct plan to treat conditions should make injuries avoidable but when these standards drop, our medical negligence solicitors are there to help you claim the compensation you deserve.
What Is a Pressure Sore?
Also known as bedsores or pressure ulcers, these are injuries caused to the skin and tissue when the area is subject to prolonged pressure against a surface. These often occur if someone is bedridden or left in a sitting position such as in a chair or wheelchair for a large amount of time. The type of pressure sore stages can vary depending on the area of the body and the time left untreated.
The most common areas for pressure sores to develop are:
- The button
- Elbows or shoulders
- Ankles or heels
- Ears
- Lower back
If you have suffered due to lack of care, our specialist solicitors can help you with pressure sore claims.
What Causes Pressure Sores?
When a person is left stationary in one position for a prolonged amount of time, this places pressure on that area. When this pressure is applied it can stop the flow of blood from correctly circulating through the body. This causes the tissue to become damaged in that area. If this is left too long the skin and tissue will begin to breakaway due to lack of oxygen, nutrients and white blood cells. This can then turn to infection to the area resulting in the need for pressure sore treatment.
Normal regular movement prevents this from happening but if someone requires assistance to move and is not receiving the correct care, pressure sores can begin to develop quickly. This also prevents a build up of moisture to the area which can also cause sores to develop.
When receiving treatment or care in a hospital, nursing home or even at your own home, the standard provided by the medical professionals should be second to none. Sadly, all too often, below par care can result in avoidable injuries such as pressure sores.
The provision of adequate care and the correct plan to treat conditions should make injuries avoidable but when these standards drop, our medical negligence solicitors are there to help you claim the compensation you deserve.
What Is a Pressure Sore?
Also known as bedsores or pressure ulcers, these are injuries caused to the skin and tissue when the area is subject to prolonged pressure against a surface. These often occur if someone is bedridden or left in a sitting position such as in a chair or wheelchair for a large amount of time. The type of pressure sore stages can vary depending on the area of the body and the time left untreated.
The most common areas for pressure sores to develop are:
- The buttox
- Elbows or shoulders
- Ankles or heels
- Ears
- Lower back
If you have suffered due to lack of care, our specialist solicitors can help you with pressure sore claims.
What Causes Pressure Sores?
When a person is left stationary in one position for a prolonged amount of time, this places pressure on that area. When this pressure is applied it can stop the flow of blood from correctly circulating through the body. This causes the tissue to become damaged in that area. If this is left too long the skin and tissue will begin to breakaway due to lack of oxygen, nutrients and white blood cells. This can then turn to infection to the area resulting in the need for pressure sore treatment.
Normal regular movement prevents this from happening but if someone requires assistance to move and is not receiving the correct care, pressure sores can begin to develop quickly. This also prevents a build up of moisture to the area which can also cause sores to develop.
If you are receiving treatment or in a care home, these should be monitored as the risk of infection increases as the wound opens.
It is when standards drop that our expert lawyers are there to guide and advise you on how to make a claim.
How Are Sores Treated?
Treatment for sores varies depending on how severe they have become. The easiest way to prevent and treat bedsores is through regular movement and changing position. If this is not possible due to injury, the medical professionals caring for you should use specialist mattresses or cushions to aid ventilation and to reduce pressure to the body or affected area.
If a sore has developed, correct care such as dressing to the wound, regular cleaning and removing damaged tissue can help the affected area heal as well as keep away infections.
When treatment is not carried out correctly the consequences can be severe resulting in blood poisoning or the need for corrective surgery. Creams can sometimes be applied but again this can cause the injury to deteriorate as it keeps the area moist, stropping the skin from healing and causing greater risk of infection.
Who is Most at Risk?
Pressure sores can affect anybody but there are some categories that are at a higher risk, such as:
- Being bedridden due to injury, illness or resulting from surgical procedure
- The elderly (over 70) are less likely to be as mobile and can suffer damage to the skin more easily
- Diet can cause issues due to being obesity or malnourishment
- Incontinence to bladder or bowel can result in moisture build-up resulting in ulcers developing
- Underlying health conditions causing the blood supply to diminish or make the skin more fragile can also increase the risk of bedsores. For example MS (multiple sclerosis), diabetes, heart disease or failure, to name a few.
If any of these factors are present, your health care professional should be monitoring the condition to decrease the risk. It is when the care is below par that negligence is caused resulting in pressure sore claims.
Am I Entitled to Make a Claim?
If you or a loved one feel you have been let down and are a victim of medical negligence you can sue for bed sores uk. Our expert lawyers have decades of experience helping patients and their families make compensation claims against the NHS and private care.
As a patient you deserve a level of care.
When the standards of care drop we can provide a no obligation assessment and guide you through your medical negligence claim.
Most pressure sores are avoidable and are the result of negligence through:
- Incorrect diagnosis of symptoms
- Not treating early enough
- Incorrect care or monitoring
- Not using or implementing the patients Waterlow score
No Win No Fee Medical Negligence Solicitors
How Much Can I Claim?
Due to the different grade and severity of the sore, there is no set level of compensation. This can vary on a case by case basis, especially as further complications can develop such as blood poisoning, the need for surgery, skin graft, amputation and sadly sometimes resulting in death.
When making a claim for compensation, our specialist lawyers will not just look at the injury caused but also additional factors such as care costs or medical expenses. The pressure ulcers may have also caused you to have excessive time off work so incidents such as loss of earnings will also be taken into account.
No Win No Fee medical negligence Claim
When you make a claim through NHS Negligence Claim, our specialist solicitors will provide the representation you deserve on a No Win No Fee basis. This gives you peace of mind as there are no upfront costs and if your claim is unsuccessful you will not have to pay legal fees. As a victim of medical negligence you are entitled to make a claim against your care provider or NHS and we will be there for you every step of the way.
How We Can Help
When you have suffered at the hands of a nurse, care worker, doctor or other medical professional, your confidence and trust can be knocked. With decades of experience helping patients and their families, our expert solicitors specialize in getting you the justice you deserve.
From your first no obligation assessment, we will obtain the information we need and guide you through the process ahead. Our medical negligence solicitors will help you through every step of your claim so you know you are in safe, dependable hands.
If you have suffered medical negligence resulting in pressure sore injuries, contact our specialist solicitors today t o make a no win no fee claim against the NHS or private care provider. Just complete our claim assessment form or call 0800 999 3372.