Article drafted by Hawre Ali (Paralegal) and Rohana Abeywardana (Legal Director)
Introduction
The Early Notification (EN) Scheme is an initiative set up by NHS Resolution to achieve the delivery of safer maternity care. The scheme investigates specific injuries at birth for the purpose of determining if negligence has caused the harm.
From 1 April 2022, the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts’ members are required to report cases which fall under the EN criteria. This article will, briefly, provider a reminder and explain the steps required by Trusts to report incidents that satisfy the EN criteria.
What are the EN criteria?
The criteria include the following:
- All babies born at term (37 completed weeks of gestation), following labour, that had a potentially severe brain injury diagnosed in the first seven days of life, and:
– Was diagnosed with grade III hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE); or
– Was therapeutically cooled (active cooling only); or
– Had decreased central tone and was comatose and had seizures of any kind. - Babies who have an abnormal MRI scan where there is evidence of changes in relation to intrapartum HIE.
EN Process from 1 April 2022
Trusts continue to be required to report their maternity incidents to HSIB via their electronic portal.
From 1 April 2022, Trusts’ legal teams are required to notify NHS Resolution of qualifying EN cases once HSIB has confirmed that they are under investigation.
Trusts will need to report the incident to NHS Resolution via the Claims Wizard. Please include the following details:
- The HSIB Reference No. should be included in the “any other comments” box; and
- Please select Sangita Bodalia, Head of Early Notification at NHS Resolution, on the Claims Report Wizard.
After submission, NHS Resolution will acknowledge the incident to the Trust. HSIB is expected to complete their investigations within 6 months of reporting. However, we expect Trusts to continue with their duty of candour conversations and inform families of the EN process.
Once the HSIB report has been received we ask the Trust to share this with NHS Resolution within 30 days of receipt. NHS Resolution will conduct an initial triage to confirm whether the clinical criteria for an investigation under the EN Scheme are met.
Following the confirmation of liability investigation, NHS Resolution will inform Trusts which cases will be investigated. NHS Resolution will then contact the family to inform them of this decision.
NHS Resolution will then instruct specialist medical lawyers (like Hill Dickinson LLP) to start investigations into the potential for a compensation payment. They will work alongside the Trusts’ legal and clinical teams. In the majority of cases, they will instruct independent medical experts to review the standard of care provided and apply the legal test to determine whether compensation should be paid.
Once the investigation is completed, NHS Resolution, the medical lawyers and the Trust work together to inform the family of the outcome.
Any queries
We hope that this reminder of Trusts’ reporting requirements is helpful. However, if you have any queries, please contact a member of the team.
For further information, please contact:
Rohana Abeywardana, Hill Dickinson
rohana.abeywardana@hilldickinson.com
