Misdiagnosed Kidney Infection

Hospital Trust Apologises To Family

The family of a woman who died in hospital after a treatable kidney infection was misdiagnosed, has received an apology from the hospital trust involved.

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust said the care offered to Annette Hewitt at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham was below an acceptable standard.

Mrs Hewitt, 69, from St Ann's, was diagnosed with a suspected perforated bowel when she was admitted to the hospital last January. Hospital staff said she was too unwell for a life saving operation, and she was treated as terminally ill.

However, after her death, a post-mortem examination found she had died from a kidney infection that could have been successfully treated. Her family also said that her medication was not topped up and she did not have enough fluids.

Neil Welch, a clinical director at the trust, said the family would get an apology. "I would like to sincerely apologise to Mrs Hewitt's family for the aspects of her care which weren't up to the expected standard," he said.

Mrs Hewitt's daughter, Rachel Thompson, told the Nottingham Evening Post: "If we had thought there was a chance she would have survived we would have fought for her to keep having antibiotics."

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Georgina Sheldon, a clinical negligence lawyer at Irwin Mitchell said: "Whilst it is helpful that the Trust has admitted that the care afforded to Mrs Hewitt fell below an acceptable standard, it is extremely disappointing that the errors in this lady's care had such a tragic outcome.

"It is hoped that the Trust will learn from the mistakes made and work to improve patient safety to ensure that such errors are avoided in future."