As part of your corporate associate membership with claims-made protection with us, it is very important that your corporate officer tells us as soon as possible if an adverse incident occurs.
If they do not let us know, it could mean that if a claim is ever made against the corporate following the incident, we won’t be able to assist.
Your ability to request assistance from us depends on two things:
- The date on which an adverse incident occurred.
- The date the adverse incident and claim is reported to Medical Protection.
As well as reporting adverse incidents, your corporate officer would also be the person who would request assistance if the incident progressed to a claim.
In order for corporate officers to request assistance, advice and support for claims against their organisation the following things are crucial:
- A corporate officer must report an adverse incident to us as soon as they possibly can after it happens or they become aware of it.
- The corporate must have been in membership on the date that the adverse incident occurred, and remain in continuous membership between the date that the adverse incident occurs, and the date that the issue is reported.
- If the corporate’s membership has ended, a corporate officer must have reported the incident within the 30-day notification period at the end of the membership.
It is essential that the details of any adverse incident are recorded in writing. The nature of clinical negligence means that a significant amount of time can go by between an adverse incident happening and a claim being brought. By recording the details of the incident as soon as possible after it happens, there will be more information available, and that information will be more accurate, if it develops into a medicolegal issue.
What is an adverse incident?
When we say ‘adverse incident’ we mean anything that happens that might lead to a claim, complaint or allegation against you.
If there is an event or situation that, in your view, could possibly develop into a scenario where you would need to ask for our help, it is an adverse incident and a corporate officer needs to tell us about it.
If you are unsure if an incident might develop, a corporate officer should still report it just in case.
Find out more using the links below