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ABSTRACT
In this work an attempt have been made to present what the tort of negligence is. The thesis hereafter delved into the nature of medical negligence, the crux of this dissertation. The attendant history of the tort of medical negligence was also examined. Medical malpractice law refers to the negligent acts undertaken by a medical professional whose performance of duties differs from a reasonable health care provider's actions, or standard of care. It means the failure of a healthcare provider to use reasonable care and skill in the discharge of his duties towards a patient, consequently incurring liabilities on him and his employer where available. This duty could mean the treatment and diagnosis or offer of medical advice to the patient. Physicians historically have set their own standards of care, and their conduct have usually been judged by comparing it with that of other physicians. Ethical canons, or codes, are generally focused on professional etiquette and courtesy toward fellow physicians rather than on the relationships with patients. The Hippocratic oath, formulated in the 5th century BCE, presumably by the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates, was a notable exception, but its provisions were ascribed to by only a minority of Greek physicians at the time. The law became intimately involved in medical practice in the 20th century. Medical negligence as the name connotes is on the face of it, a tortious wrong. However, there is a criminal perspective to it. The medical practitioner as well as a dentist, a general health Practitioner and similarly, all those who by virtue of their relations with another owes certain Obligations to another are all liable for a tortious wrong where their conducts with respect to their neighbor falls below the minimum requirement of the law.
