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Review
. 2018 Nov;39(11):1075-1081.
doi: 10.15537/smj.2018.11.22854.

The process of litigation for medical errors in Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom

Abdullah H Alkhenizan  1 , Mohammed R Shafiq
Affiliations
Review

The process of litigation for medical errors in Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom

Abdullah H Alkhenizan et al. Saudi Med J. 2018 Nov.

Abstract

Efficient process of litigation of medical errors is a key to ensure fair, speedy, and accessible justice system. The conditions of establishing medical negligence are similar in both legal systems. These conditions include the duty of care, breach of that duty of care, the damages, and establishing causation. A culture of litigation and compensation is growing in the United Kingdom and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; however the cost of medical claims and awarded compensations are much more in the United Kingdom compared to Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, there is a need for more transparency in the documentation and publication of litigated medical errors. In addition, there is a need to introduce interventions to shorten the duration of litigation in both legal systems. Financial caps on awarded compensation and caps on expert and legal fees are potential strategies to control the cost of medical errors which seems to work well in the Saudi model.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Awarded compensations for clinical negligence claims per specialty in the United Kingdom (2017).
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