NHS Pays £180,000 Compensation for Mother’s Unnecessary Death

01/02/2017


Unnecessary deaths caused by medical negligence are always a tragedy but, with the right legal advice, fair compensation can at least soften the blow. In one case, the family of a mother who died the day after she was sent home from a hospital accident and emergency department despite being critically ill won a £180,000 damages payout from the NHS.

The mother was suffering from acute abdominal pains and vomiting and had been taken to the hospital by ambulance. However, on the mistaken basis that she was suffering from gastroenteritis, she was sent home with instructions to drink plenty of fluids and to return if her pain worsened. She was found dead the following day – her 46th birthday – having developed sepsis due to a large obstruction in her bowel.

In agreeing to settle her family’s case, the relevant NHS trust accepted that she should have been formally admitted to the hospital for observation and that, had that happened, she would probably have undergone emergency surgery. The compensation would be divided between members of her family, including her two young daughters, aged nine and 12, her 75-year-old mother, for whom she cared, and her partner. The High Court approved the settlement.

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