The Cost of Hospice Care is recoverable
In a ground breaking judgement in the High Court on the
5th August His Honour Judge Anthony Thornton QC awarded
£10,000 to a family on trust for a hospice.
06 I 08 I 10
James Wilson died in
March 2007 from mesothelioma, a cancer caused as a result of being
exposed to asbestos when working as a young man at the Dartford
Power Station as a boiler erector in the 1950s. The last 3 weeks of his life
were spent at St Joseph’s Hospice in Hackney where he received
palliative care. His family wanted to make a donation to the
Hospice in recognition of the care that James had received before
he died, but their only
means of doing so was from the compensation claim.
The judge hearing the
case decided that, even
though there was no agreement with the Hospice for payment for
James’ care, a claim could
be made by the family equivalent to the cost of that care.
The amount claimed was assessed on the basis of that element
of St Joseph's running costs which was not funded from the
donations made to it by the donor Primary Care Trusts and was based
upon 23 days in patient care at £379 per day and 1 episode of
community care assessed at £1,304. The Defendant was ordered to
pay the sum of £10,021 direct to St Joseph’s Hospice.
Hugh James partner Cenric
Clement-Evans commented “This is very welcome news for the hospice
movement which does such wonderful work. It will mean that in
future cases, with the
agreement of the family, much needed funds can be
recovered on behalf of hospices so that they can continue to
provide such excellent care.”