Apologies bill (Scotland) could make things worse

Published: 26 Sep 2012

AvMA’s responseĀ to Consultation onĀ  the proposed Apologies (Scotland) Bill being proposed by Margaret Mitchell MSP says that although well intended, the Bill could actually make matters worse in the NHS without an accompanying Duty of Candour with patients when things go wrong in healthcare. AvMA argue that to introduce protection of apologies without a statutory duty to be open and honest may lead to misuse of so-called apologies to try to avoid liability for mistakes and could re-enforce the culture that allows organisations and individuals to justify not being open for fear of litigation.