Location:
Birmingham
Victoria Blankstone was a theatre nurse before studying law and joining Irwin Mitchell in 2003.
Having previously worked in numerous NHS and private hospitals in the UK and overseas, she is now based in Birmingham as a clinical negligence solicitor where her cases include multiparty claims and fatal injury. Victoria is a member of Solicitors for the Elderly Association and has taken a lead on cases involving elderly abuse, such as the widely publicised case of the Maypole Nursing Home which was under investigation for 4 years and successfully judicially review following a number of unexplained deaths.
With an in-depth knowledge of both the NHS and private healthcare system, Victoria has a broad range of legal experience involving claims in all areas of medicine and nursing. To date her cases have included repeated failures to diagnose incarcerated hernia in a patient with Prada-Willi syndrome, failure to diagnose and treat breast cancer and manage joint replacement surgery. Victoria has dealt with anaesthetic awareness and succeeded in a number of cases involving deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary emboli and the failure to prevent and treat severe pressure sore injury.
Victoria has a special interest in neurological injuries and previous cases include failures to diagnose and treat brain and spinal tumours, cauda equina syndrome, failure to manage metabolic disease, cerebro-vascular disease and ventriculo-peritoneal shunt obstruction.
A significant number of Victoria’s cases involve fatal injury and inquest law. Victoria has had numerous cases involving a wide variety of medical and nursing failings both in hospitals and nursing homes, which have included death following insertion of naso-gastric feeding and cholecystectomy, death following aspiration during anaesthesia and during a clinical trial.
Victoria also has significant experience in dealing with the General Medical Council and the Nursing and Midwifery Council in addition to judicial review proceedings giving guidance to clients on the legal process involved.
Victoria is happy to deal with local and regional press on behalf of clients having had considerable experience in preparing numerous press releases and participating in radio and television interviews following involvement in high profile cases.
A good listener, Victoria excels in client care and explaining every part of the legal process. The most important aspect of her work is helping victims of clinical accidents rebuild their lives and reach their optimal level of independence. Victoria’s favourite part of her work is the day she tells her clients that their cases have been successfully settled.
In her spare time Victoria will often be found outdoors in all weathers riding horses or exploring our inland waterways by narrowboat. She is also involved in voluntary work for BCOP a local charity assisting elderly residents in Birmingham.
Chambers and Partners Directory 2012: “ Victoria Blankstone works really hard for her clients and impresses peers with her work on interesting, complex and difficult cases.”