Prevention of Future Deaths reports · 2015

Olive Darbyshire

Regulation 28 report to prevent future deaths, written 22 May 2015. A coroner writes one of these when an inquest reveals a risk that could cause further deaths unless something changes.

Date of report22 May 2015
DeceasedOlive Darbyshire
CoronerAlan Wilson
Coroner areaBlackpool and the Fylde
CategoryHospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Sourcejudiciary.uk record · original PDF
Responses publishednone published

The report

Text recovered by OCR from a scanned PDF. OCR is imperfect: check anything you rely on against the source PDF. Reproduced verbatim, including the scan's own layout.

REGULATION 28: REPORT TO PREVENT FUTURE DEATHS (1)

NOTE: This form is to be used after an inquest.

REGULATION 28 REPORT TO PREVENT FUTURE DEATHS
THIS REPORT IS BEING SENT TO:

The Chief Executive
Blackpool Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

1 | CORONER

1am Alan Wilson, Senior Coroner, for the area of Blackpool & Fylde

2 | CORONER’S LEGAL POWERS

| make this report under paragraph 7, Schedule 5, of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009
and regulations 28 and 29 of the Coroners (Investigations) Regulations 2013.

3 | INVESTIGATION and INQUEST

On 2™ April 2015 | opened an investigation into the death of Olive Darbyshire. The
inquest concluded on 22™ May 2015.

The conclusion of the Coroner as to the death was a narrative conclusion as follows:
Olive Darbyshire died of natural causes which were more than minimally, trivially or
negligibly contributed to by a fall dated 22"? December 2014.

The medical cause of death was:

la Multi Organ Failure
Ib Acute intestinal haemorrhage
1c Ischaemic colitis / fracture of left neck of femur following a fall [dated 22.12.14] and

dalteparin therapy

4 | CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE DEATH

Olive Darbyshire suffered a fall on 22" December 2014. She was trying to make her
way from her bed to the toilet during the morning of 22™ December 2014 when she
became tangled in her bedding and fell suffering a hip fracture. She was taken to
hospital. She received dalteparin medication. A Pulmonary embolism was suspected
and an urgent CT Pulmonary Angiogram requested on 23" December to rule out a
Pulmonary Embolism. The CTPA re quest was not acted upon. On 26"" December 2014
a major intestinal bleed was detected. An endoscopy was carried out but there was no
obvious source of the bleed found. Mrs Darbyshire passed away at 14.50 on 28"
December 2014.

The inquiry learnt that on 24" December the radiology department was provided with
information which led to Mrs Darbyshire being erroneously categorised as an outpatient.
Despite an attempt later that day to re-classify her as an inpatient, this was not acted
upon and she remained categorised as an outpatient the impact of which was that no
CTPA was carried out prior to her death.

CORONER’S CONCERNS

During the course of the inquest the evidence revealed matters giving rise to concern. In
my opinion there is a risk that future deaths will occur unless action is taken. In the
circumstances it is my statutory duty to report to you.

The MATTERS OF CONCERN are as follows:

1. Although it is not possible to say whether a CTPA procedure would have had an
impact upon when Mrs Darbyshire died, | am concerned that two senior Doctors
gave evidence that they were expecting an urgent CTPA to have taken place
and that this had not happened some three days after the request was made.

2. lam concerned that according to the Radiology department there is no record of
the clinical team responsible for Mrs Darbyshire’s care making efforts to “chase
up” the missing CTPA procedure.

3. |am-concerned that the radiology department staff have incorrectly categorised
Mrs Darbyshire in a way that meant that she spent a number of days in hospital
awaiting an urgent CTPA procedure that in reality was not going to happen
because once categorised as an outpatient she realistically would only expect to
receive a CTPA in 2015 by way of a written notification.

4. lamconcerned that given this request was made on 23" December 2014,
subsequent events have been influenced by the fact that the request was made
shortly before the Christmas period and that a lack of action taken by the clinical
team to “chase up” the CTPA and the actions of the radiology department
administration staff have been influenced by reduced staffing levels over the
Christmas holiday period when the department would deal with inpatient
requests only, and emergency requests pertaining to Accident & Emergency
patients.

ACTION SHOULD BE TAKEN

In my opinion action should be taken to prevent future deaths and | believe you
[AND/OR your organisation] have the power to take such action.

YOUR RESPONSE

You are under a duty to respond to this report within 56 days of the date of this report,
namely by 17" July 2015. I, the coroner, may extend the period.

Your response must contain details of action taken or proposed to be taken, setting out
the timetable for action. Otherwise you must explain why no action is proposed.

COPIES and PUBLICATION

| have sent a copy of my report to the Chief Coroner and to the following Interested
Persons

The family of Olive Darbyshire.
The Coroners Society

| am also under a duty to send the Chief Coroner a copy of your response.

The Chief Coroner may publish either or both in a complete or redacted or summary
form. He may send a copy of this report to any person who he believes may find it useful

or of interest. You may make representations to me, the coroner, at the time of your
response, about the release or the publication of your response by the Chief Coroner.

A.A.Wilson

Alan Wilson
Senior Coroner for Blackpool & The Fylde
Dated: 22" May 2015

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