Parents of babies who are negligently injured during childbirth could soon have access to a new compensation scheme being rolled out by the Government.
The Rapid Resolution and Redress Scheme, which is currently out for consultation, aims to settle obstetric cases more quickly.
Each year in England the NHS investigates 500 cases in which a baby has been wrongfully harmed during birth, many of which have suffered catastrophic injuries such as brain damage or cerebral palsy.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has said that these claims take an average of 11-and-a-half years to settle, and that speedier resolutions are needed.
He also wants the new scheme to enable medical staff to speak more freely about mistakes that were made, which he believes does not happen now due to a “blame culture”.
However, the scheme is entirely voluntary, and parents who want to bring a claim through the courts will still be able to do so.
This latest announcement is part of the Government’s plans to reduce failings in maternity care, which last year cost the NHS £500m in compensation settlements.
The Health Secretary is set to implement further measures to improve maternity care in England, which currently has one of the worst rates of stillbirth in any developed country.
These include setting aside an extra £8m for training, and maternity ratings for every clinical commissioning group across the NHS.
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