Consultation on Recommendations for No-Fault Compensation in Scotland for Injuries Resulting from Clinical Treatment

Consultation process

Electronic publication and additional copies:

This consultation paper is available via the internet at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Consultations/Current

You can use this link to find out more about the consultation.

Or if you want paper copies of the consultation paper, or if you or someone you care for requires the consultation paper in a different format or language, please contact us at:

Or e-mail to: nofaultcompensation@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

Copies of the documents mentioned in this paper can also be obtained from these addresses.

This consultation is being conducted in line with the Scottish Government's consultation process Consultation: Good Practice Guidance¹

This consultation, and all other Scottish Government consultation exercises, can be viewed online on the consultation web pages at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/consultations. You can telephone Freephone 0800 77 1234 to find out where your nearest public internet access point is. There will be no charge for this call.

A Public Consultation on Recommendations for No-fault Compensation in Scotland for Injuries Resulting from Clinical Treatment

This consultation is for anyone who would be affected in anyway by a change in the compensation arrangements for injuries resulting from clinical treatment. There are a number of interests at stake - for example, NHS and private patients or staff, patient's families, carers, NHS Boards, healthcare professionals, NHS and private healthcare providers, equipment suppliers, regulatory bodies, Royal Colleges, medical defence associations, the legal profession.

The consultation paper explains the background to the work undertaken by the No-fault Compensation Review Group established by the Scottish Government in 2009. It should be read in conjunction with the Review Group's report² and the Study report³ of the researchers supporting the work of the group. In particular the consultation seeks views on:

• the essential criteria for a compensation scheme for injuries resulting from clinical treatment
• the recommendations of the no-fault compensation group
• the implications of the introduction of a no-fault compensation scheme in Scotland
• how a no-fault scheme could work in practice, both for the benefit of individual patients and the good of the health service as a whole.

The consultation questions are included within the text of the paper in Part 1 and for ease these are repeated as part of the Respondent Information Form included as Part 2.