Injuries occurring in connection with health or medical care

Only personal injuries caused in connection with health and medical care can be compensated for under the Patient Injuries Act or the Patient Insurance Act.

In accordance with the Act on the Status and Rights of Patients, the terms health care and medical care mean measures taken by health care professionals or in a health care unit in order to assess the state of health of a person or to restore or maintain it.

1) Daily care provided by a home care worker

An elderly person had been provided with various services to support living at home. A home care worker regularly visited the elderly person to assist in morning and evening chores, cleaning, laundry, helping with eating and taking the elderly person for walks. While the home care worker was walking the elderly person in the living room in connection with the regular day walk, the elderly person fell over and hit his head.

Because the fall took place in connection with daily care, this was not health and medical care referred to in the Patient Injuries Act.

2) Spinal fracture in connection with physical therapy

A patient's leg stuck to a balancing boom during an exercise in physical therapy. He fell on his back, which caused a compression fracture.

This was an accident connected with treatment, in this case physical therapy. The injury was compensated for under patient insurance.