Martha’s Rule is the right to obtain a second opinion in circumstances where a patient is deteriorating rapidly and there is a belief that patient or relative concerns are being dismissed by treating clinicians/doctors.
The head of NHS England has announced the rollout of “Martha’s Rule in Hospitals from April 2024. It is expected that at least 100 NHS Trusts in England are to bring in Martha’s Rule with plans to expand it across community and mental health settings.
Who is affected and what does it mean?:
Patients, their families, carers and advocates, alongside all NHS staff, will have the legal right to a second opinion from an independent critical care team in circumstances where a patient’s condition is deteriorating rapidly and there is a belief that concerns are being dismissed.
Background on Martha’s Rule:
Martha Mills was only 13 when she died at King’s College Hospital in London in the summer of 2021 after falling off her bicycle during a family holiday in Wales. The Hospital failed to identify and treat an injury to her pancreas, which caused sepsis. The Hospital then failed to act on Martha’s families concerns that she was deteriorating. This led to a further failure to diagnose and treat sepsis which led to her death.
Following an inquest into Martha’s death, the Coroner ruled that Martha’s death could have been avoided had her parents’ concerns been listened to as she would not have remained on a ward. She would have been moved to intensive care sooner and received the treatment she required.
Following Martha’s death, her parents campaigned for a right to second opinion when concerns are not being listened to in circumstances where patients are deteriorating rapidly. Their determination for justice and campaigning has resulted in “Martha’s Rule” being implemented.
NHS chief Amanda Pritchard has acknowledged that ‘Martha’s Law’ has the potential to “save many lives in the future”.
Implementation of Martha’s Rule
The implementation of Martha’s Rule in the NHS will take a phased approach:
Martha’s Rule involves three components:
The three proposed components of Martha’s Rule are:
- All staff in NHS trusts must have 24/7 access to a rapid review from a critical care outreach team, who they can contact should they have concerns about a patient.
- All patients, their families, carers, and advocates must also have access to the same 24/7 rapid review from a critical care outreach team, which they can contact via mechanisms advertised around the hospital, and more widely if they are worried about the patient’s condition.
- The NHS must implement a structured approach to obtain information relating to a patient’s condition directly from patients and their families at least daily. In the first instance, this will cover all inpatients in acute and specialist trusts.
The UK Sepsis Trust applauds Martha’s Rule rollout in England, and it is hoped that lives will be saved following implementation.
What is sepsis:
Sepsis is a life-threatening condition that occurs when the body’s response to an infection injures its own tissues and organs. It is life threatening and urgent medical intervention is required.
Statistics:
According to the UK Sepsis Trust, around 245,000 cases of sepsis occur in the UK each year.
The UK Sepsis Trust reports that around 48,000 deaths are attributed to sepsis annually in the UK. Approximately 25% of these deaths are preventable with timely diagnosis and appropriate treatment.
For more information on Sepsis read our article ‘Medical negligence claims for sepsis’
How Prosperity Law Can Help You
If you think that you or a loved one has been injured as a result of medical negligence associated with a delay in diagnosing and treating sepsis, then you may be able to make a claim.
We hold Clinical Negligence Accreditation from the law society ensuring your case is being dealt with a specialist team.
If you would like to know more about how Prosperity Law can help you for your medical negligence claim or our many other services, then please contact us today for a confidential consultation with a qualified solicitor.
You can get in touch with our expert team today but calling us on 0151 909 1848 or emailing enquiries@prosperitylaw.com
