A practice in the Warwickshire area

2. Mrs V complains the Practice failed to refer her for an urgent scan following her complaint of post-menopausal bleeding.

3. Mrs V says because of this, her cancer diagnosis was delayed by three months and the tumour is now inoperable. Mrs V says it is distressing she may never know if the tumour could have been removed had it been diagnosed earlier. She says she is finding it hard to concentrate on daily activities and is taking prescribed medication to help her sleep.

4. Mrs V would like compensation to secure her children's future and pay for her mother's care if she is unable to continue to care for her mother following treatment.

6. We have carefully considered Mrs V’s complaint about the care and treatment she received from the Practice. We have decided it is reasonable for Mrs V to pursue a route to take legal action.

7. In general terms, clinical negligence takes place when a patient who undergoes treatment is injured because of that treatment. Failure to carry out appropriate treatment can also amount to negligence.

8. Mrs V tells us her diagnosis of uterine cancer was delayed because the Practice failed to refer her for an urgent scan in early July 2022. Mrs V says she is finding it very difficult to come to terms with the realisation that, had she been diagnosed three months earlier, the tumour may have been operable. Due to the distress, Mrs V is finding it hard to concentrate on her daily activities and has been prescribed medication to help her sleep.

9. Mrs V seeks financial compensation to secure her children’s future and pay for her mother's care.

10. We do not consider compensation in the same way as the courts, and a court would be able to carefully consider and assess an appropriate amount of compensation. We would not want to disadvantage Mrs V by ‘under settling’ the claim when it would be more appropriate for her to go through a legal process.

11. We consider Mrs V could take legal action on this matter due to the claimed failing and its impact on her.

12. We have discussed any barriers Mrs V may have to taking legal action. Mrs V tells us there are no barriers, so she has agreed to explore legal options with a solicitor. For this reason, we will take no further action on this part of her complaint.

1. The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman has carefully considered Mrs V’s complaint about a medical practice in the Warwickshire area (the Practice). We were very sorry to hear about Mrs V’s experience and recognise the distress it has caused. We consider Mrs V could take legal action on the matter she has brought to us, so we have decided not to consider Mrs V’s complaint further.