What is medical negligence?

Medical negligence occurs when a healthcare provider treats a patient negligently or carelessly that falls short of the standard of care that another responsible, credentialed, and knowledgeable practitioner would offer in a comparable circumstance. When a medical professional makes unacceptable mistakes during operations and other procedures, fails to diagnose dangerous conditions, fails to warn patients about significant risks associated with specific therapies, etc., negligence turns into malpractice. It also occurs when a patient's injury worsens as a result of treatment.

Before negligence can result in a malpractice claim, two further requirements must be met: legal causation and damages. A medical malpractice claim may be unsuccessful if the doctor's conduct did not adversely affect the patient's condition.

Law on medical negligence in the UAE

Medical negligence cases in the UAE were covered by Federal Law Number 10 of 2008, which was later replaced in 2016 by the New Medical Negligence Law. The doctor-patient relationship is acknowledged by the Medical Liability Act, which was passed on December 16, 2008, and mandates that healthcare providers enter into insurance agreements for treatment errors. In the UAE, claims are considered torts and call for damages as payment. Federal Law No. 4 of 2016, the UAE's new medical law, has rules for situations outside of medical liability. Article 6 of the Act outlines specific justifications for not harming patients, refers to such instances as "medical malpractice," and includes redressal measures.

What constitutes these offences?

Severe medical errors can be penalized by jail and fines if they are proven to be criminal medical negligence, but the requirements are never specified, making it difficult to put them into practice. The above-mentioned term was defined by Cabinet Resolution No. 40, which was adopted by the UAE in 2019. Article 6 of this law defines medical negligence cases in the UAE as one that a medical professional makes because of:

1. Lack of technical knowledge that any practitioner with the same degree and specialty should be familiar with.
2. Failure to adhere to accepted professional and medical standards.
3. Not paying due diligence.
4. Carelessness and inattention.

A medical error that results in a patient's death (including that of a fetus), the loss of a limb, the impairment of a bodily function, or any other, as a result of the following, falls under the definition of medical negligence, as defined in Article 5 of the aforementioned Resolution.

Severe ignorance of the recognized medical codes of practice, according to the professional practitioner's degree and area of specialization;

Following a method not medically practiced

Unjustifiable deviance from the medical profession's code of conduct and rules.

The medical professional is under the influence of alcohol or illegal stuff.

Extreme carelessness or a failure to pay close attention when performing routine tasks, such as failing to switch on medical equipment during or after surgery, giving a patient the wrong dosage of medication, failing to resuscitate a patient, failing to deliver the baby, failing to administer the medically appropriate medication or any other actions that may be construed as serious negligence.

Intentionally practice the profession outside the scope of the specialization or clerical privilege enjoyed by the physician under his or her license, or the physician issues a diagnosis or administers a course of treatment for which he or she is not trained or qualified without the aid of a qualified medical professional.

Medical negligence in the UAE, according to medical liability law, makes medical professionals responsible for any medical errors they make that are intended to maximize profit or other benefits. According to Article 34 of the law, penalties for negligence are huge. Doctors who make mistakes that cause a patient to pass away are subject to up to two years in prison and/or fines of up to 500,000 AED (136,105 US dollars). Additionally, it adds that a doctor who causes a patient to die as a result of medical mistakes or negligence may get a term of up to two years in prison, a fine, or both if they were under the influence of alcohol or drugs when the serious mistake was made.