Negligent Delay at Hospital causes Fatal Arrest
May I thank you for the way my accident claim has been handled, after my accident my confidence was very low indeed but the sympathetic handling of my case restored my confidence.
John, SheffieldMrs Jones, 71 was admitted to Selly Oak Hospital in Birmingham in October 2004 after complaining of shortness of breath.
Mrs Jones underwent a scan at the hospital, which confirmed that she was suffering from a pulmonary embolism (PE) - a condition in which a blood clot becomes dislodged from its site of formation and lodges in the lung artery.
There was a negligent delay at the hospital in administering Warfarin, the anticoagulant medication often used to treat a pulmonary embolism. The delay caused Mrs Jones to suffer a fatal arrest.
The University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust admitted that they had been negligent in not treating Mrs Jones more quickly.
"Because the NHS Trust admitted negligence the case settled very quickly," said specialist clinical negligence solicitor Louise Hunt who settled Mrs Jones' case for a five figure sum.
Pulmonary Embolism (PE)
A pulmonary embolism (PE) is a sudden blockage in a lung artery. This is usually as a result of a blood clot travelling to the lung from the leg, although the clot can travel from other parts of the body. The clot itself is called an embolus.
PE is a very serious condition. It can cause damage to the lung because of lack of blood flow to the lung; reduced oxygen levels in the blood and damage to other organs because of the reduced oxygen levels. Death can be caused by a very large clot (embolus) or sometimes a number of small clots.
If the symptoms are noticed early enough then the patient can be treated, usually by being given intravenous heparin or warfarin, drugs which thin the blood and thus allow the clot to dissolve and for blood to flow more freely around the body. In PE cases even a short delay in diagnosis or treatment can have fatal consequences.
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