Care Opinion will not publish stories relating to matters which are being or have been considered by a legal process, such as a criminal, civil or coroner’s court, a mental health tribunal or a fitness to practice tribunal.
Nor will Care Opinion publish stories relating to matters which are being or have been investigated by an ombudsman service or a statutory body such as a healthcare regulator, professional standards regulator or the Information Commissioner's Office.
However, Care Opinion will consider stories which are being or have been the subject of a formal complaint.
Why does Care Opinion have this policy?
Where a legal process is imminent or ongoing (sub judice), publication of material on Care Opinion may inadvertently prejudice the outcome of the case and risk a contempt of court.
Where a legal or statutory process is complete, that process will have considered the issues far more rigorously than can possibly be done on Care Opinion, and there will be a published outcome.
All relevant parties (healthcare organisations, professionals) will be aware of the outcome, which may also have been reported in news media. There will be no additional public benefit to publication on Care Opinion.
Although a story author may wish to comment on a legal or statutory process or outcome, this would be out of scope for Care Opinion. Our purpose is to share experiences of care, not experiences of legal or statutory processes, or commentary on the outcome of such processes.