TORTUOUS LIABILITY OF MEDICAL PRACTITIONERS IN NIGERIA: AN APPRAISAL

Abstract

Medical practice usually involves different activities which if not professionally handled, may give rise to liabilities on the part of the medical practitioner. These liabilities may arise in tortuous claims and in some other cases, may go beyond the realm of civil liabilities to criminal liabilities. Medical Law is an area of law that seems alien and unexplored in Nigerian jurisprudence as there is scarcely an awareness mechanism put in place in educating people as well as the medical and health practitioners on the legal implication of their actions and inactions in the course of carrying out their professional duties. This thesis therefore offered an appraisal of the tortuous liability of Medical Practitioners in Nigeria. First, it started with an introductory chapter that considered the background to the study and set out the Statement of the problems, aim and the objectives, scope, significance, limitations of the study and the research methodology. Secondly, it considered the positivist, naturalist, and realist theories considering these theories to have influenced the thesis and succinctly discussed certain concepts that constitute the conceptual frameworks for a better understanding of the paper. Thirdly, it examined the legal and institutional frameworks strengthening legal practice in Nigeria vis-à-vis negligence and liabilities of the medical practitioners in Tort. Fourthly, it appraised the various actions and inactions culminating to tortuous and criminal liability by medical and health practitioners, remedies available to victims of the negligence of the medical and health practitioners as well as the defenses available for medical and health practitioners. Fifthly, it provided a comparative analysis of tortuous liability of medical practitioners in Nigeria, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia and South Africa. The reason for the choice of these jurisdictions for comparative study is informed by their records of excellence in their respective healthcare industries. Lastly, it summarized with conclusion and recommends amongst others, improved awareness for the victims to approach the courts to seek redress, trainings for hospital managements on law of torts, improved surgical facilities for hospitals and adequate funding for the health institutions in Nigeria et cetera, for a reformed medical practice especially in dealing with medical negligence in Nigeria. The research methodology adopted in this thesis is doctrinal method of research.