Last updated on June 29th, 2017 at 10:16 am

Miss N, who was 45 when she died in December 2011, had been suffering from abdominal pain for some years.  She had undergone surgery to remove fibroids.  She had continued to suffer after the operation and was told that she had irritable bowel syndrome.

Increasing pain misdiagnosed

From around 2010, Ms N’s pain became worse.  Her stomach was swelled and she was often unable to go to the toilet.  Her GP diagnosed piles and prescribed cream.  She got no better: in fact the stomach pain got worse and worse and by the middle of 2011, she was hardly able to stand straight.

Ms N visited her GP and a walk in clinic a few times but nothing was done – she was simply given some medication and discharged.  She also attended A & E at Nottingham Hospital, but was discharged once again.

A few days before she died, Ms N had an appointment at the treatment centre located behind the Queen’s Medical University Hospital. The doctor prescribed suppositories which were to be posted to her.  He mentioned septicemia but let her go home, which she did – in pain.

A night or so after that, Ms N’s mother found her daughter screaming in pain in the bathroom and when she went to see to her, found red lesions all over her body.

The following morning, Ms N called her GP practice, who, she felt, were rude and dismissive.  Her mother took the phone and explained how ill her daughter was and that it was urgent.  She was given an appointment later that day, and when the doctor saw her and the lesions, he realised how ill she was and referred her to hospital.

Hospital’s poor service leads to death

Ms N and her mother waited around 2 hours in the ward waiting room before Ms N’s mother had to go home as she was ill.  She had in fact had breast cancer surgery and was very ill herself (her daughter had been her primary carer).  She left her phone number and nurses rang her the next morning to say that her daughter had become worse in the night and had been taken to surgery.  She went straight to the hospital with her son at around 9am and they were eventually allowed to see Ms N at around 2.00pm.  Ms N looked very ill and was hooked up to several machines.  Doctors gave Ms N’s mother the impression that whilst she was very ill, things could improve.  In fact Ms N had been diagnosed with a peri anal abscess and had undergone surgery to drain and examine it.

Ms N’s mother and brother were not able to stay long as she was so ill.  Nurses contacted Ms N’s brother in the early hours of the following morning to say that she had died.

Nikki pursues compensation following the death of Ms N

Ms N’s mother contacted Graysons to see if she could gain any redress and Nikki took up the case.  Nikki contacted Nottingham University NHS Trust alleging that Ms N’s care had fallen below an acceptable standard and that, amongst other issues, the hospital had failed to:

• carry out adequate examination when Ms N visited the hospital a few days before she died
• properly consider the GP’s correspondence when Ms N was admitted to hospital or request the proper blood and urine tests
• carry out necessary hourly observations
• follow the trust’s policy regarding escalation of a deteriorating patient
• contact the consultant or registrar – which was in breach of policy
• follow up tests once they were taken, leaving significant delays in getting bloods to the laboratory and failing to complete the relevant forms so that it was not known who took the bloods or when they were taken
• carry out urinalysis and activate kidney injury flow chart
• specify a time scale for the required scan
• complete transfer forms prior to Ms N’s movement between wards

Nikki also alleged that staff nurses on 2 of the wards on which Ms N had been placed had not completed acute illness management training.  She claimed that, as a result of the above failings, the extent of Ms N’s ill health was not identified and, had kidney function results been available sooner, she would have been taken to theatre earlier.  She claimed that Ms N’s death had resulted from a direct failure of care by the hospital.

The hospital admitted breach of its duty of care, but denied that Ms N’s death could have been avoided.  Nikki argued the case and, in the end, was able to win £28,000 in compensation, which included damages for funeral expenses, as well as pain, suffering and dependency.

How can Graysons help?

We understand how the death of a loved one can be devastating for a family, especially if that death is as a result of negligent care from health professionals.  If you have suffered due to the death of a relative in these circumstances, or have suffered yourself due to poor quality of care, please contact our medical negligence experts who will be able to make a free of charge appointment in which we can discuss your case.

You can find more information on our web pages about how we can help if you have suffered as a result of medical negligence.