Rapid Responses to:

PRACTICE: Judith Cave and Jane Dacre Dealing with complaints BMJ 2008; 336: 326-328 [Full text]

Rapid Responses: Submit a response to this article

Rapid Responses published:

Complaints Statistics

Jill P Millar, Mollie Donohoe, Chris Bower   (1 March 2008)

Complaints Statistics 1 March 2008
Jill P Millar, GP and medical student teacher at Peninsula Medical School Buckland Surgery, 1 Raleigh Rd, Newton Abbot TQ12 4HG, Mollie Donohoe, Chris Bower Send response to journal: Re: Complaints Statistics	We read your article on complaints with interest and but were concerned that the numbers quoted as resorting to litigation seemed low at fewr than 50 cases per year and could lead to inappropriate comlacency. After reviewing the NHSLA website we felt that you had misquoted the figures. Fewer than 50 negligence cases per year are contested in court which are only 4% of the total negligence cases. We used this article for teaching medical students about complaints and are concerned that it misrepresents the real situation. Competing interests: None declared