Claim of Negligence: A Case Study
Scenario 1:
A patient with chest pain was taken to hospital by the doctor, but he failed to perform the necessary test. For a negligence claim to succeed, the plaintiff in this scenario must show that the doctor breached the duty of care that was owed.
As for the first part, the doctor is clearly responsible to provide treatment to patients. It can also be argued that he breached his duty of care by not ordering an appropriate test which could have resulted in earlier diagnosis and treatment – thus leading us into the second element. In terms of causation, it can be said that if the test had been done then the outcome may have been different and damages potentially avoided – meeting third element. Finally, it can be established that because treatment was delayed due to lack of testing, damages such as pain and suffering were indeed suffered by plaintiff – satisfying fourth element.
According to these factors, an action for negligence is likely to be successful.