Case note: An Onerous Standard of Care in History Taking (FB v Princess Alexandra Hospital)
Authors: Philippa Kemp Published date: 15-07-2019 Status: PublishedIn a recent case of appeal against Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust, the Court of Appeal was wrong to find that Dr Rushd breached the standard of care for taking a history in _FB v Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust_ \[2017] EWCA Civ 334. An analysis of the court’s judgment shows that the court has failed to test the standard of care for taking a history against the measure of reasonableness. The application of the measure of reasonableness demonstrates that Dr Rushd did provide a reasonable standard of care. Although the court was right to uphold _Wilsher v Essex AHA_ \[1987] 1 QB 730 because junior doctors should not be held to a lower standard, this does not justify the Court of Appeal setting the standard of care higher than is expected by a reasonable standard. To uphold this precedent places an onerous burden on GPs.
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Corresponding author. Philippa Kemp: pip@kempmail.co.uk
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COPYRIGHT: © The UK Law and Society Association, 2019
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