Mr Colin Holburn

Mr Colin Holburn is an experienced Consultant in Accident & Emergency at Sandwell & West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust.

Following graduation he undertook general professional training in surgical disciplines obtaining the Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons at the end of that period. Specialist training in Emergency Medicine followed with accreditation in Emergency Medicine being obtained in September 1991 and was awarded the Fellowship of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine in 1993. He is on the Specialist Register in Emergency Medicine.

Mr Holburn was appointed as Consultant in Emergency Medicine to Sandwell Health Authority in February 1992 in charge of the Emergency Department of Sandwell General Hospital. He was the Divisional Director for Emergency Care at Sandwell & West Birmingham Hospital NHS Trust responsible for 2 Emergency Departments and Assessment units from 2004-2007 and clinical lead for Emergency Medicine for the Trust from 2013-15.

He has been actively involved in the Training committee in Emergency Medicine and from 2007- 2012 was the Head of Training for Emergency Medicine in the West Midlands. Mr Holburn was the Chair of the Training Standards Committee at the Royal College of Emergency Medicine from 2012-15 responsible for the oversight of training nationally and sat for the same period on the Council of the Royal College.

Mr Holburn is an examiner for the Fellowship Examination at the Royal College of Emergency Medicine. He is an Advanced Trauma Life Support instructor, and has been an Advanced Cardiac Life Support provider, instructor and course director, and an Advanced Paediatric Life Support provider and instructor.

He was elected as a Governor of the Expert Witness Institute in 2020. In the past 12 months he has been awarded Fellowship of the Expert Witness Institute. 

Mr Holburn’s considerable experience can help with every scenario originating from emergency medicine. This includes (but is not exclusive of): failure to diagnose, making the wrong diagnosis and failing to or giving incorrect treatment. He undertakes medico-legal reporting for both claimant and defendant, has experience of giving evidence in court, has prepared reports for Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service in fitness to practice cases and has been instructed by a number of HM Coroners to provide expert evidence for inquests regarding care in the Emergency Department. He has appeared in Tribunals and court cases remotely in the last 12 months.

Expertise includes:
• Standard of clinical care in the Emergency Department
• Treatment of hand and upper limb injuries
• Treatment of head injuries
• Soft tissue sports injuries
• Causation of injuries incurred as a result of possible criminal activity including injuries caused by blunt and sharp injuries, human and animal bites
• Multiple trauma
• Spinal injuries including diagnosis of cauda equina syndrome
• Missed fractures including scaphoid fractures
• Diagnosis of DVT and Pulmonary Embolism
• Chemical incidents
• Management of overdoses including paracetamol
• Emergency cardiac care and resuscitation
• Use of NICE guidelines and pathways

Services provided includes:
• Advice and indicators of approximate costs
• Brief preliminary reports with a rapid response
• Standard Reports prepared within three months of formal instructions
• Feedback and answers written, comments on statements, reports and claim forms
• Conferences with counsel attended as required
• The arrangement of expert meetings
• Joint reports prepared within court timetable
• Attendance at court if needed

Attended training in both report writing, expert meetings and giving evidence; Fellow of the Expert Witness Institute and member of the Academy of Experts