"The infected and affected": a closer look at the victims of contaminated blood
In the second instalment in our series on the infected blood scandal, our clinical negligence team unpacks who has suffered as a result, what their next steps are and how Russell-Cooke can support victims of contaminated blood.
We know that tens of thousands of people were infected with HIV and hepatitis, with over 3,000 having died and thousands more living with health conditions.
Who did it affect?
Within those numbers are two main groups: haemophiliacs and others with blood clotting conditions, and those given contaminated transfusions following childbirth, surgery or other medical treatments in the period between 1970 and 1991.
Haemophilia is a rare genetic condition that impairs the body’s ability to make blood clots (which are needed to stop bleeding) which, in the 1970s, was treated using donated blood to create replacement clotting agents. This treatment was made in batches which combined the blood from thousands of donors. This meant that if the plasma from one donor was infected, they all were.
The Haemophilia Society has documented that over 1,200 people contracted HIV this way, with over a quarter of that figure being children. They report that a further 2,400 to 5,000 developed hepatitis C. Worse still, children across the UK were reportedly used to trial new treatments without their or their parents’ knowledge.
As for those who received contaminated transfusions, the inquiry estimates that up to 100 people were infected with HIV and around 27,000 with hepatitis C.
But it isn’t only those who received contaminated blood (the "infected") that can be classed as victims. There are also what the inquiry terms the "affected"—anybody who has suffered indirectly, such as family and friends.
What’s next for them?
When stating the findings of the Infected Blood Inquiry, chair Sir Brian Langstaff said “this disaster was not an accident…the infections happened because those in authority - doctors, the blood services and successive governments—did not put patient safety first.”
These shortcomings included a failure to stop importing high-risk blood from abroad, as well as to stop accepting high-risk blood domestically, as well as not heat-treating blood products to eliminate HIV until 1985 and inadequate testing of products to reduce the risk of hepatitis C from the 1970s onwards.
Because of this, victims of the scandal are projected to be able to claim between £2.2 million and £2.6 million if living with HIV and between £665,000 and £810,000 if suffering chronically from hepatitis C. The partner of someone infected with HIV who is still alive today can expect to receive in the region of £110,000, while a child could receive £55,000.
How our solicitors assist with infected blood claims
Pursuing a medical negligence claim can be intimidating and draining, not least when you are suffering with the lasting effects of your condition and or the emotional pain of watching a loved one suffer.
Through our clinical negligence team’s long experience, we understand and empathise with the stress a claim places upon both victim and family, and will support you to pursue a fair result.
We can prepare and submit your application to the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme and ensure that you get the full compensation you are entitled to under the scheme.
Made up of specialist lawyers, our team are accredited members of panels including the Law Society Clinical Negligence Panel, Action Against Medical Accidents Panel and the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers. Beyond the initial claim, we can also advise on a range of additional issues such as wills, trusts, court of protection and conveyancing to deal with all aspects of your life post-injury.
As a clinical negligence lawyer with over 30 years in the field I am pretty unshockable, but the infected blood scandal shocks me to my core. The purchase of high-risk blood products, the failure to properly treat those products and the testing of those products on children without their parents’ consent amount to nothing less than recklessness. I am dismayed that this disaster, which has altered the lives of so many, has not attracted greater media attention.
Read the first instalment, ‘The biggest treatment disaster in the history of the NHS'? What happened and where are we now?, in which we look at the background to the scandal.
Janice Gardner is a partner in the medical negligence team. She has over 30 years' experience specialising in infection, spinal injuries and brain injuries, and has successfully won many cases at trial.
Get in touch
If you would like to speak with a member of the team you can contact our medical negligence solicitors by email, by telephone on +44 (0)20 3826 7517 or complete our enquiry form below.
