Medicolegal Helpline

In order to provide a more streamlined, personal and holistic support to members when contacting the PRASIS Medicolegal helpline, Emily Borhan will shortly be starting as the Medicolegal advisor for PRASIS.

Emily is a Senior Medical Negligence Advisor, with a wide experience of medical law, indemnity and medicolegal advice. She supported the early growth and development of PRASIS from as far back as 2013, and has previously assisted PRASIS members with a wide variety of medicolegal issues.

Emily would be very pleased to discuss any issues with you.

She will be available to provide continuity to contacting members, supported by the insurer-appointed ‘out of hours’ medicolegal assistance. The helpline number is shown on your policy schedule and will be updated for all members as you renew. She can also be contacted by email on

emily.borhan@m-i-c.co.uk

As always emphasised it is vital that any members who receive a complaint (or who have any concerns) contact the Medicolegal helpline without any delays, so as to ensure appropriate advice and actions at the earliest stage possible, thereby providing maximum protection for the member.

Medical Legal Advisory Team

Weightmans' specialist Healthcare team covers all aspects of healthcare and related areas of law and practice, including clinical negligence, child law, clinical governance, consent to treatment, healthcare advisory and mental health.

We provide a supportive, proactive service based on a deep understanding of NHS procedures and the social / political background of healthcare.

Our expert team includes doctors and nurses among other health professionals, all with specialist medical knowledge in key areas.

Deborah Bannister

Partner
DDI: 0121 200 3490
deborah.bannister@weightmans.com

Deborah joined Weightmans in 2005 and focuses upon clinical negligence litigation on behalf of NHS Resolution. She directly advises NHS Trusts in respect of all aspects of healthcare and related areas of law and practice such as clinical negligence, clinical governance, risk management, inquests, consent to treatment and mental health. She is also responsible for the day to day running and supervision of the Birmingham team. Deborah handles large volumes of complex high value and sensitive cases. She has a particular interest in cases involving catastrophic injury, birth injury, surgical error and misdiagnosis. This includes claims involving multiple claimants or defendants and cases involving the media. Deborah lectures on the subject of clinical claims.

Melanie Isherwood

Partner
DDI: 0121 200 8115
melanie.isherwood@weightmans.com

Melanie qualified as a solicitor in 1994, previously having been a hospital doctor. She joined Weightmans in 2001 and was made partner in 2006. Her specialisms include birth injury cases and other high value, media sensitive claims settled by means of periodical payments, together with a wide variety of other claims generated by clinical errors. Melanie has successfully defended several surgical claims. As part of claims handling, Melanie provides guidance on complaints handling and risk management. She regularly represents clients at mediation and other methods of Alternative Dispute Resolution.

Melanie is also an enthusiastic trainer on all matters concerning risk management, mediation and litigation.

She is the President of the Birmingham Medico Legal Society.

John Glendening

Consultant,
DDI: 0116 242 8930
john.glendening@weightmans.com

John practiced as a hospital doctor before re-training as lawyer qualifying as a solicitor in 1997. He advises clients on inquests, consent to treatment, treatment of incapacitated patients, Court of Protection, Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, confidentiality, risk management, serious incident investigation, report drafting and training, general health law, assessment of claims. He also deals with the deaths of patients in custody; avoidance of prevention of future death reports at inquests; advice and co-ordination where parallel processes such as inquest, serious incident investigation, and complaint are on going simultaneously.

Catherine Ainsworth

Associate,
DDI: 0121 200 3477
catherine.ainsworth@weightmans.com

Catherine joined Weightmans in 1999 and qualified as a solicitor in September 2001. She has a litigation background, having previously undertaken EL/PL in the insurance/retail sectors and professional indemnity claims for Bar Mutual. She became Associate Solicitor in 2006 and has been undertaking healthcare work for the last ten years, handling predominantly clinical negligence claims.

She handles a range of clinical negligence claims for NHS Resolution and NHS Trusts, and is experienced in claims involving birth injury, psychiatric treatment, oncology, misdiagnosis/delayed diagnosis, surgical negligence and spinal and brain injury cases.

Catherine has handled a range of complex/high value clinical claims since 2006 onwards.

Catherine also has experience of handling dental claims within the NHS sphere, most notably dental claims arising out of oncology treatment.

Joanne Harrison

Solicitor
DDI: 0121 200 8140
joanne.harrison@weightmans.com

Joanne qualified as a solicitor in September 2011. She has gained experience in Professional Regulatory, Healthcare Advisory and Clinical Negligence.

She has completed a number of secondments with the PSA which involved advising in respect of s.29 referrals to the High Court. She is an active committee member of the Association of Regulatory and Disciplinary Lawyers (‘ARDL’) and also sat as a reserve lay hearings panel member on the Fitness to Practice Panel of the General Optical Council.

Examples of Joanne’s work include:

Defending interim and final regulatory proceedings, including GDC, GMC, NCTL and GCC registrants involved in fitness to practise proceedings.
Advising in respect of a range of healthcare advisory issues, including DPA and access to health records issues.
General advisory work in respect of the helplines.