Organs withheld - families to receive compensation
01/01/2000
We just wanted to say thank you. We will never be able to repay you or express how grateful we are to you for all the support and help. There would have been no one in the world that we would have had in preference to you to act for us.
John, Newcastle Upon Tyne
A number of relatives of children whose organs were withheld, or tissue samples taken without their permission will receive compensation.
The practice happened after post-mortem tests had been carried out at hospitals across Scotland.
Compensation was awarded in recognition of the distress, trauma and anxiety suffered by relatives as a result of the practice.
Over 1,000 families were affected by the organ retention in Scottish hospitals between 1970 and 2000. About 6,000 organs and tissues were retained by Scottish hospitals during this time.
The cases that are being settled today are only those that apply to families whose children's post-mortem examination was carried out by a hospital.
The widespread practice came to light following the investigation into organ retention at Alder Hey hospital in Liverpool.
The NHS in Scotland admitted that organs had been withheld without parents' permission at a number of hospitals.
Since then laws governing permission for post-mortem examinations and experiments on human tissues have been tightened.
But they only apply to those whose relatives had a post-mortem examination carried out by a hospital, not by the Crown in cases of sudden, unexplained deaths.
Alexander Harris represented a number of families in the organ retention scandal at Alder Hey Hospital.
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