Reliance on clinical guidelines in contemporary negligence litigation in the UK:Influential or determinative?

Heywood, Rob (2021) Reliance on clinical guidelines in contemporary negligence litigation in the UK:Influential or determinative? In: Clinical Guidelines and the Law of Medical Negligence. Elgar Studies in Health and the Law . Edward Elgar Publishing, pp. 52-79. ISBN 9781789908886

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Abstract

Clinical guidelines (guidelines) are playing an ever-increasing role in the provision of modern healthcare. Growing in number and emanating from an impressive array of sources, some of their intended aims are to raise standards, set out clear expectations and enhance patient safety. With these in mind, guidelines ought to be welcomed, for they act as a useful frame of reference for responsible medical practice. A trend has therefore developed where guidelines are frequently introduced as evidence in clinical negligence litigation, yet there has been some uncertainty surrounding the precise status that should be afforded to them. Equally, from a different angle, while it is sometimes difficult to predict the amount of influence guidelines will have on allegations of negligence pertaining to treatment and diagnosis, it could be argued that in relation to pre-operative disclosure, they have played a more prominent role in redefining the legal standard of care. A number of tensions stem from this, not least the fact that contradictions between the amount of emphasis placed on guidelines across different areas creates confusion amongst clinicians, patients and lawyers. This chapter investigates a range of recent contentious legal issues relating to the use of guidelines in treatment, diagnosis and disclosure cases.

Item Type:	Book Section
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Social Sciences > School of Law
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Medical Humanities Research Network
Related URLs:	https://www.scopus.com/pages/publication...
Depositing User:	LivePure Connector
Date Deposited:	28 Oct 2021 00:53
Last Modified:	14 May 2026 08:55
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/81908
DOI:

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