Medical Jurisprudence, Volume 1 (of 3)Paris, John Ayrton
Science
Medical Jurisprudence, Volume 1 (of 3)
Paris, John Ayrton
Medical laws and legislation -- Great Britain
“And it seems that any deviation from the established mode of practice,
shall be deemed sufficient to charge the Surgeon, &c. in case of any
injury arising to the patient.” _See Slater_ v. _Baker and Stapleton_. 2
_Wils._ 359. which was a special action on the case against a Surgeon
and an Apothecary, for unskilfully disuniting the callous of the
plaintiff’s leg after it was set, (_see Appendix, p._ 189) which it
appears was done for the purpose of trying a new instrument. The
Plaintiff recovered 500_l._ against the Defendants jointly, and the
Chief Justice said he was well satisfied with the verdict. On a motion
for a new trial, the judgment was affirmed by the whole Court.
In _Seare_ against _Prentice_, 8 _East. R._ 348. it was determined that
this action lies against a Surgeon for gross ignorance and want of skill
in his profession, as well as for negligence and carelessness, to the
detriment of a patient; though if the evidence be of negligence only,
which was properly left to the jury, and negatived by them; the Court
will not grant a new trial, because the jury were directed that want of
skill alone would not sustain the action. _See Appendix, p._ 194.
In the case of _Neale_ v. _Pettigrew_, a Surgeon was held responsible in
damages for the negligence and unskilfulness of his apprentice or
servant[142].
Though the cited cases are surgical, there is no doubt that similar
actions would be maintainable against Physicians or other medical
practitioners; but as internal injuries are less demonstrable than
external, there might be some difficulty in obtaining the necessary
evidence. We shall treat in another place of the criminal responsibility
of persons undertaking cures in cases where death ensues from their
mal-practice.
MIDWIFERY.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account