ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the role of the media in reporting medical stories, and accounts of clinical negligence and error in particular, and considers assertions that irresponsible media reporting can be blamed for fuelling what Lord Falconer called ‘have a go’ attitudes to compensation in the UK. 1 The question is whether the media are engaged in a ‘feeding frenzy’ centred on the NHS, or whether they are bringing to the attention of the public matters of serious concern, in a climate of freedom of expression for which the UK is famous throughout the world. This is supported by the human rights framework and Freedom of Information Act 2000 which, although criticised as being too restrictive, has enabled journalists to obtain some highly sensitive information about the NHS. It is logical that negative media reports may lead to negative publicity for healthcare organisations, and it has been suggested that stories about malpractice and the volume and level of claims have been exaggerated by the popular media. The result is that many NHS Trusts and healthcare organisations now employ press officers to handle difficult publicity and encourage the reporting of success stories. Government departments, including the Department of Health, have had press officers and ‘spin doctors’ ever since New Labour came into power, and Health Ministers’ announcements are obviously drafted by civil servants with public opinion firmly in mind – a study of which is worthy of a doctorate in its own right. That does not mean that there is no cause for concern about the number of errors in healthcare and the volume of claims, but the position becomes self-authenticating because of the role of the media in reporting healthcare malpractice stories.
