When something goes wrong in independent healthcare, who is actually responsible? The answer can depend heavily on the contracts that were in place long before a claim arose.

In this episode of AlteaTalks, Will Marshall, Head of Legal and Risk Management at Altea, is joined by Anna Walsh, Partner in the Insurance and Reinsurance Group at CMS, to explore why contracts matter so much for independent healthcare providers. Drawing on Anna’s extensive experience of medical malpractice claims and disputes, they look at three important relationships: the people providers work with but don’t directly employ, patients and service users, and suppliers and commissioners. They discuss practising privileges, agency and temporary workers, self-employed practitioners in the beauty and aesthetics sector, patient terms and conditions and NHS commissioning arrangements. They also consider what can happen when responsibilities haven’t been clearly defined, why indemnity and insurance provisions matter, and the lessons healthcare providers can take from recent cases. Finally, Anna looks ahead to some of the emerging legal and contractual issues likely to shape independent healthcare — including AI, changing workforce models and preventative medicine.

A practical conversation about contracts, responsibility and managing risk before a problem becomes a claim.