Doctors Report

largepants

I am currently involved with a personal injuries case and Im in a bit of a sticky situation.

The other side are willing to settle asap. However our solicitor is waiting on a report from a consultant for the past six months without any success. He has written several times looking gor it. My wife has been on myself several times and this has also proved futile. Without this report our solicitor will not meet for settlement talks with the other side.

Is there any way I can approach this with the consultant. Has anyone had any experience of an issue like this and if so how do you get around it?

ResearchWill

Ask the solicitor is it a good idea that you talk to the consultant about this issue. Has the consultant been paid for the report?

largepants

ResearchWill wrote: »

Ask the solicitor is it a good idea that you talk to the consultant about this issue. Has the consultant been paid for the report?

Well the solicitor wrote to us to try and make contact with the consultant because he's completely ignoring his correspondence.

He hasn't been paid. We've gotten a previous report from him that was paid for. He has promised to forward the report time and time again but theres no sign of it coming.

If Im unsuccessful is there any higher body that I can go to?

davo10

largepants wrote: »

Well the solicitor wrote to us to try and make contact with the consultant because he's completely ignoring his correspondence.

He hasn't been paid. We've gotten a previous report from him that was paid for. He has promised to forward the report time and time again but theres no sign of it coming.

If Im unsuccessful is there any higher body that I can go to?

All medical reports must be paid for before they are released. The consultant informs the solicitor the report is ready and will be forwarded when fees are recieved in full, not before. If you have not paid for it, you probably will have to wait until you do.

largepants

davo10 wrote: »

All medical reports must be paid for before they are released. The consultant informs the solicitor the report is ready and will be forwarded when fees are recieved in full, not before. If you have not paid for it, you probably will have to wait until you do.

Genuinely payment is not an issue. The consultant has completely ignored our requests. Its very frustrating.

davo10

largepants wrote: »

Genuinely payment is not an issue. The consultant has completely ignored our requests. Its very frustrating.

Have you considered doorstepping him at his private clinic? This is very bad form, when most of us do reports we get them typed up and sent ASAP to minimise inconvenience.

MagicSean

largepants wrote: »

My wife has been on myself several times and this has also proved futile.

Sorry to hear that.

largepants

davo10 wrote: »

Have you considered doorstepping him at his private clinic? This is very bad form, when most of us do reports we get them typed up and sent ASAP to minimise inconvenience.

Im going to ring this afternoon and see what way that goes. After that I'll be doorstepping him.

Its three and a half years and has cost us a nice few quid. Would rather see it coming to an end.

largepants

MagicSean wrote: »

Sorry to hear that.

Very good. Ill prob need another report for that problem!!!

nuac

Ask your GP to contact your consultant.

largepants

nuac wrote: »

Ask your GP to contact your consultant.

Never thought of that. Good call. He's actually in his clinic tomorrow so I'll ring again tomorrow. Was told today he doesn't have a secretary at the moment.

Hopefully it'll be sorted before Christmas or else it'll be a further 3 months.

JBG2011

First of all your solicitor needs that medical report: he would be potentially negligent and doing you a disservice to settle without the report, so your solicitor is taking the correct approach.

Second of all, the consultant is under no legal obligation to provide a report. This is not easy to hear, but a client has no place doorstepping a doctor, ffffing and blinding about him not giving the report. When you think about it, you are asking the consultant to do you a favour and if he's unprepared to do you this favour, well then you are in a bit of a difficulty. Doctors by and large hate doing medical legal reports as they are time consuming, troublesome and take them away from their core business of minding patients.

If the consultant agreed to do the report, was paid for it but it hasn't materialised then that would be a different matter as the doc would be in breach of contract.

While the consultant is not legally obliged to furnish you with a report he can be press ganged into giving evidence on your behalf by being served with a witness summons. However, this is very much the nuclear option and won't go down well with the consultant one iota. While he will give truthful evidence on your behalf in court you'll most likely have to deal with one unhappy individual who will stick you with 5 grand in witness/locum expensives if you fail to win your case.

The threat of a witness summons might get him to play ball but it will leave a sour taste in the mouth for all involved.

Unfortunately that is the deeply flawed system we have for personal injuries in Ireland: it largely depends on doctors who for the most part want no part in the system.

drkpower

JBG2011 wrote: »

Second of all, the consultant is under no legal obligation to provide a report.

If he has provided treatment, he is.

If requested, you should provide reports for solicitors or insurance
companies in relation to patients you have seen or treated professionally. However, the provision of such reports in the context of
potential litigation places additional obligations on you to avoid
any actual or perceived conflict of interest.

You must provide reports without unreasonable delay to ensure
that no disadvantage accrues to patients.

http://www.medicalcouncil.ie/Information-for-Doctors/Professional-Conduct-Ethics/The-Guide-to-Professional-Conduct-and-Ethics-for-Registered-Medical-Practitioners.pdf

JBG2011

drkpower wrote: »

If he has provided treatment, he is.


http://www.medicalcouncil.ie/Information-for-Doctors/Professional-Conduct-Ethics/The-Guide-to-Professional-Conduct-and-Ethics-for-Registered-Medical-Practitioners.pdf

I stand corrected if I'm wrong, but that may be just an ethical responsibility rather than a legal obligation. The wording is "should" is different to "must".

You are probably right though: whilst you mightn't be able to take legal action to force him to provide a report you could go down the medical council route.

Again, what you can do and what you should do to keep all parties happy on the ground is problematic. Solicitors could just carpet bomb doctors with witness summons but that would probably result in doctors refusing en masse to provide medical reports in any circumstance, thus requiring messy legislative intervention.

drkpower

JBG2011 wrote: »

I stand corrected if I'm wrong, but that may be just an ethical responsibility rather than a legal obligation.

Lets just say he is under an obligation, then!

Although I'm sure one could make a strong argument that a failure to provide a report (in breach of one's ethical obligations) amounts to a breach of contract, or a breach of duty to the patient, both of which would be technically legal obligations.

JBG2011

Another factor possibly in play is that the acting solicitor doesn't want to offend or fall out with the consultant. If the consultant is in a local hospital and he provides medical reports for a lot of the solicitor's clients, the solicitor will be loathe to upset him or her, in fear of being blacklisted.

I fully understand the OP's frustrations: I was once involved in a case where we had to chase a consultant for more than two years to get a report.

largepants

JBG2011 wrote: »

Another factor possibly in play is that the acting solicitor doesn't want to offend or fall out with the consultant. If the consultant is in a local hospital and he provides medical reports for a lot of the solicitor's clients, the solicitor will be loathe to upset him or her, in fear of being blacklisted.

I fully understand the OP's frustrations: I was once involved in a case where we had to chase a consultant for more than two years to get a report.

Im sure you are right in respect of the solicitor not wanting to offend the consultant. I got in contact with him today and he assured me it would be with the solicitor next week. Dragging on a bit now and cant wait to leave it all behind.

Appreciate all the input. Always nice to get a neutral view.