Ceylan Simsek, Medical Case Manager, and Dr Karen Ellison, Medicolegal Consultant, both of Medical Protection, look at the legislation behind your statutory duty to notify.

Despite the changes in recent years, being a member of the NHS Pension Scheme should still provide you with a secure retirement. These changes require you to work longer than previous generations, but the level of contributions payable for the return is still attractive. This article explains some of the recent pension changes and important pension tax-related matters.

If you’re just starting out in private medicine, you may only have come across the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system, which tends to look after itself. When you’re running a business, you will have additional requirements to register with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), earnings to declare under Self Assessment, and taxes to pay directly to HMRC.

Talking to patients when something goes wrong is a skill that will constantly develop throughout your clinical career. Medical Protection outlines what to do when a patient safety incident occurs.

Introducing product liability into a clinical negligence claim can add extra intricacy to a case. Medical Protection discusses how this might affect the involved clinician.

Medical Protection outlines how private practice works in conjunction with working in the NHS

Medical experts are crucial to many different legal processes. They can assist in clinical negligence claims, regulatory matters, Inquests and even criminal cases.

Sepsis is a serious condition, with significant medicolegal risk. Dr Dawn McGuire, Medicolegal Consultant at Medical Protection, looks at where the risk lies

When starting in private practice, how you are structured for tax purposes is an extremely important decision. Picking the most appropriate trading structure for your individual circumstances will ensure you are tax efficient and maximise the return on your hard efforts. This article looks at the more common trade structures adopted for private work.

One of the main factors to consider when you start out in private practice is that you are running a business. It sounds obvious, but with little or no financial training it is easy to fall into the trap of not running your private practice like a business, and this almost always leads to financial loss. The second article in this series looks at the practical steps required to run your private practice as a business.

Not only is it important to be well equipped to deal with the challenges and pitfalls that might arise unexpectedly, but also to be prepared to speak to the press or deal with media enquiries following a patient’s treatment.

Dr Gabrielle Pendlebury, Medicolegal Consultant at Medical Protection, advises on how best to manage a scenario where a patient doesn’t want to know the risks

High profile cases have put the spotlight on the consent process and clinicians are increasingly aware of the risks; however, Medical Protection data shows a number of claims alleging that a clinician failed to explain alternative treatment options. Dr Emma Green, Medicolegal Consultant at Medical Protection, looks at the case law surrounding therapeutic options, GMC guidance on consent, and how these impact on the information provided to patients during the consent process.

Time to refresh yourself on the eight core pillars of person-centred care.

A consultant in England contacted the Medical Protection advice line after she found a human skeleton in her loft while in the process of moving house.

Here are some frequently asked questions about making the big move into private practice, answered by Medicolegal Consultant, Dr Karen Ellison.

Edward Leigh of The Center for Healthcare Communication argues that good communication with your patients has the potential to lower the chance of malpractice claims - even when mistakes are made.

Some difficult scenarios can sometimes arise when a clinician works both in the NHS and in a private capacity. Dr Heidi Mounsey, Medicolegal Consultant at Medical Protection, looks at one potential scenario and offers some guidance.

Communication between clinicians during a patient handover is a known point of medicolegal risk. Dr Sarah Coope, Senior Medical Educator at Medical Protection, looks at how gaps in information, misunderstandings and assumptions can increase the risk of errors, conflict and complaints.

The new guidance for firearms licensing, including arrangements for medical checks for firearm certificates, came into effect in November last year in England and Wales, and on 31 January this year in Scotland. Ceylan Simsek, Case Manager, and Dr Karen Ellison, Medicolegal Consultant at Medical Protection, discuss the key considerations for GPs

Dr Beth Walker, Medicolegal Consultant at Medical Protection, analyses a recent case and looks at what it means for clinicians

Medical Protection is proud to support the excellent work of a not-for-profit organisation in the north-west of England. Find out about REACHE North West and its work to help refugee and asylum-seeking healthcare professionals get ready for the NHS