Date Published: 1 March 2011

Clinical Negligence and other Legal Issues Re. Care of the Elderly

People working with the elderly and vulnerable are to be given a legal insight at a Birmingham conference.

Medical negligence and clinical negligence are just some aspects of law that are important for those delivering care to the elderly to know about. Other legal issues may include wills, family and wealth and, of course personal injury (an aspect of law that can affect anyone unfortunate enough to suffer certain types and causes of injury).

Expert advice will be available to care professionals from across the English Midlands who are expected to attend The Law, the Elderly and the Vulnerable, run by Access Legal from Shoosmiths, at its office in Colmore Row.

Estates and trust practitioner Susan Sorrie of Access Legal will chair the 10 March even.

She said:

" The way lawyers and law firms are viewed by those working with the elderly and vulnerable isn't always positive.

We wanted to change perceptions and show professionals in this field that there are specialist lawyers out there who want to help stop some of the appalling treatment - whether physical, mental or financial - suffered by vulnerable older people."

This conference will take place just weeks after the Health Service Ombudsman published a damning report which found that elderly NHS patients had suffered unnecessary pain, neglect and distress.

Access Legal from Shoosmiths speakers will be wills, family and wealth experts Trevor George and Suzanne Evan,; national head of clinical negligence Richard Follis, and associate Sara Hunt, who will talk about the involvement of the Court of Protection in personal injury cases where the claimant has lost capacity.

Guest speaker is John Payne, of the Extra Care Charitable Trust, which operates 29 supported housing schemes and retirement villages in the Midlands and the North.

Susan Sorrie added:

" This is a follow-up to an inaugural conference we held at our Manchester office. The feedback from that was very positive, with delegates saying they found it extremely useful."

Some readers may take the view that legal advice should not be relevant in care-giving environments. However, as complicated situations can arise care-givers may wish to be as informed as possible in order both to provide a high standard of service, and also to protect themselves where necessary and appropriate. This type of event is, perhaps, a sign of the present times.

Note:
Access Legal offer legal services in many areas including, for example, Wills Family and Wealth, Legal Disputes, Personal Injury, and Medical Negligence.

News is included on the IvyRose website to inform visitors about current health and related matters, but not to endorse any particular view or activity. Any views expressed in the article above are not necessarily those of IvyRose Ltd.. Material in this news item was released by the source cited below on 1 March 2011 and may have been edited (e.g. in style, length, and/or for ease of understanding by our international readers) for inclusion here. For further information, please visit their website.