BARNSLEY Hospital bosses paid out on three separate occasions last year following personal injury claims - including more than £17,000 for a wet floor incident which led to a fall.
Claims against the Gawber Road site’s trust by employees and visitors are covered by the NHSR Liability to Third Parties Scheme.
The trust has opened 68 claims over the last five years - including 11 this year.
This represents an increase of ten per cent compared to the previous financial year.
The figure was hit its five-year high in 2018 when 15 claimed were opened, the same number was opened the following year before a sharp drop to just eight claims in 2020/21.
A report states: “Three of the trust’s claims received during 2022/2023 relate to sharps injury/needlestick incidents, one involved a non-medical sharp.
“All needlestick/sharp incidents are monitored through the trust’s Sharps Prevention Group and reported through the Health and Safety Group.
“These claims have increased in 2022/2023 compared to 2021/2022, with the values being modest.
“The number of violence and aggression and assault claims has reduced in 2022/2023 compared to 2021/2022.
“These types of incidents have been closely monitored by the trust’s Violence and Aggression Group.”
Bosses have this year closed seven of those claims - and agreed to pay damages in three of those cases.
“In 2022/2023 the trust closed seven claims.
“Of the seven claims closed three closed with a payment of damages - 42.8 per cent - to the claimant and four were successfully defended, 57.2 per cent.
“The highest payment for the trust was £17.181.17 damages in a slip/wet floor case.
“In 2021/2022 the trust closed nine claims.
“Of the nine claims closed four closed with a payment of damages to the claimant and five were successfully defended.”
The report confirmed that work is ongoing to ensure these figures are investigated ‘more robustly’.
“The Legal Services Department continue to work closely with the Health and Safety Department to ensure that potential claims are investigated early and at incident stage, and are investigated more robustly so that contemporaneous evidence can be gathered early to afford the trust the best chance of a defence,” the report added.
Further data shows that the site’s violence and aggression management group have been working to keep the site safer for staff.
“Violence and aggression against staff is an ongoing issue to the trust, but action taken in the last 12 months includes introducing Calla body-worn cameras with clinical staff in identified areas.”
Other improvements include two members of staff completing a training programme, bosses working closely with Barnsley Council’s No Place for Hate scheme and ‘respect’ training rolled out to nurses.
