Mrs Diane McNicoll

Diane McNicoll is Service Manager for Hospital Discharges at Trafford NHS Local Care Organisation, a position she has held since 2016, and is an expert witness. Her principal areas of clinical expertise include community and district nursing, continence care, bladder and bowel dysfunction, pelvic health, urogynaecology, hospital discharge planning and integrated health and social care.

With over 35 years of nursing and operational experience, Diane has developed particular expertise in managing complex care needs across hospital and community settings. Her specialist continence practice encompasses urinary catheter management and the assessment and management of bladder and bowel dysfunction. She has also played a significant role in developing specialist continence and pelvic floor services, including a multidisciplinary urogynaecology service that achieved Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists accreditation.

Her current scope of expertise also includes hospital discharge pathways, Continuing Healthcare processes, Nursing Needs Assessments, Care Act assessments and end-of-life care pathways. Her senior leadership experience encompasses multidisciplinary nursing teams, clinical governance, service redesign and the development of integrated pathways across health and social care services.

Diane McNicoll commenced medico-legal practice in 2025 and undertakes expert witness instructions in Clinical Negligence, Personal Injury, Coroner’s Inquests and Professional Regulatory / Fitness to Practise matters. She also accepts instructions concerning Continuing Healthcare (CHC) disputes.

Her medico-legal practice focuses particularly on community nursing standards, continence care, hospital discharge and rehabilitation pathways, Continuing Healthcare provision, Care Act processes and complex care needs. She provides independent opinion on liability issues and the appropriateness of nursing care, as well as assessing ongoing care and support requirements. Her expertise is particularly relevant where cases involve discharge planning, integrated health and social care, bladder and bowel care, nursing needs assessments or decisions concerning the provision and funding of complex community care.

Diane’s clinical interests centre on the management of adults with complex health and care needs, particularly where effective coordination between hospital, community and social care services is required. A significant focus of her practice is safe hospital discharge, including the assessment of nursing needs, Continuing Healthcare requirements and the development of appropriate pathways to support patients following discharge.

She has specialist expertise in continence and pelvic health, encompassing bladder and bowel dysfunction, urogynaecological conditions and urinary catheter management. Her experience in this area supports the assessment of patients with complex continence needs and the planning of appropriate nursing interventions and ongoing support.

Her practice also encompasses complex community care, Care Act assessments and end-of-life pathways. She applies her expertise across integrated health and social care services, with particular emphasis on determining patients’ ongoing nursing and support requirements and coordinating appropriate multidisciplinary input to facilitate safe, effective care in the community.