MEASURES TO EASE MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS

22 June 2015

Gauteng Health MEC, Ms Qedani Mahlangu, announced measures to ease medical negligence claims to ensure that they are speedily finalized and they benefit the claimants.

“With the assistance of a retired Judge, Judge Classen, we are introducing alternative dispute resolution mechanism to manage cases where we have genuinely made a mistake,” said MEC Mahlangu during the presentation of her department’s budget on Friday, 19 June 2015.

“We fully support the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development’s initiative to encourage mediation as the first option in resolving disputes between parties before lawyers are brought on board.”

MEC Mahlangu told the Gauteng Legislature that medical negligence cases pose a financial risk to the health budget due to the size of the contingent liability.  While preventing these from occurring in the first instance, the department will do everything in its power to ensure that they are speedily finalized and the claimants are appropriately taken care of.

The department has appointed a team of competent and reputable law firms to audit all the case files that are already in the system. The team verifies whether money has been paid to the rightful beneficiaries and also if lawyers have not paid themselves more than what was due to them. 

Workshops have been held with clinical heads in central hospitals and the focus is in the areas of obstetrics, neurosurgery, orthopaedics and anesthesiology.

MEC Mahlangu also mentioned that “Redress Committees have been established in all health facilities to pay particular attention in meeting with families who need answers and so that they are not sent from pillar to post”.

Lawyers who unduly benefit from the claims – instead of patients - the Department will report them to the Law Society.

Statement issued by Steve Mabona, Gauteng Department of Health, June 22 2015