'My wife was told pain after surgery was trapped gas - weeks later she was dead'

A woman who died of sepsis three weeks after a routine medical procedure that was caused by sub-standard care was told she ‘probably had trapped wind’.

Retired hairdresser Val Burkill, 73, underwent a procedure to remove gallstones on October 1, 2020 at Rotherham Hospital, South Yorkshire. Known as endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography (ERCP), a flexible tube with a camera on the end is used to help identify and diagnose issues with a person’s bile ducts. The grandmother-of-seven’s procedure only lasted eight minutes and she was discharged to her home in Bolton-upon-Dearne just an hour later. Yet despite complaining of stomach pain, no examination was carried out on her.

Later in the evening, Val’s husband, Garry, 79, called the hospital and was told she probably had trapped wind. However, feeling in ‘absolute agony,’ Val started vomiting. Garry called an ambulance, which took her back to the hospital. She would never return home.

READ MORE: ‘I was last one to talk to Jo hours before her ex beat her to death with hammer’

READ MORE: 'I have 12 months to live after worrying symptom was dismissed as heartburn'

It wasn’t until 15 days later – on October 16 – that Val was diagnosed with a perforated bowel. She developed sepsis and continued to deteriorate. She was transferred to hospice care and died on October 24.

Because of Covid-19 pandemic restrictions in force at the time, many of Val’s family weren't even able to give her a proper goodbye. Following her death, devastated husband Garry commissioned medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate her care.

Now, a review by Royal College of Physicians has found failures in the care of 58 patients at the hospital. A total of 25 patients “suffered some degree of harm,” including seven who died, a Hospital Trust report said.

Retired builder Garry said: “Seeing her as her life slipped away is something that will stay with us forever. We still had so many years together and I feel robbed that these were taken away from us.

“It breaks my heart to think how she needlessly suffered and the treatment she received from Rotherham Trust. Our family will never be the same without Val.

“We knew we owed it to her to get answers regarding her care but it was still devastating when the Trust admitted Val would have made a full recovery if she had received the correct care. This latest news is hard to accept. We knew there were issues with Val’s care, but we never expected there to have been failings in the ERCP service on such a large scale.

“Not only has this news shocked us but it has brought back the horrible memories around what happened to Val and the pain and suffering she had to go through in her final weeks. It’s hard not to think that if she had gone to another hospital for her ERCP, Val would still be alive.

“Our family continues to have concerns about whether everything is being done to ensure the safety of patients and this latest news just adds to that. Our hearts go out to the others who have been affected by failings in the ERCP service.”

Rotherham Hospital suspended its ERCP service on July 2021 after concerns were raised about the standard of care. A review carried out by the Royal College of Physicians has now been made public, more than two years after it was completed.

The review found that 68 out of 959 patients died or suffered complications within 30 days of an ERCP procedure at the hospital, with 58 attributed to a failure of care. The Trust said it was contacting all 68 patients or their families earlier this month to apologise and to “outline what the external review has said about their individual care.”

The report found a range of care failures including inadequate recording of informed consent, deficiencies in reports and poor radiological documentation. A lack of discussion between medical experts and decision making were also of concern.

Tim Annett, a medical negligence lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, said: “The scale and nature of the care failures identified raise serious questions about patient safety. That care concerns were identified four-year-ago and failings identified two-years-ago also raises serious questions about the Trust’s transparency and clinical governance.

“While we welcome the Trust’s decision to now contact affected patients and families, and its commitment to implementing the RCP’s recommendations, it’s vital that those impacted receive not only a full explanation but also appropriate support and redress. We urge the Trust to ensure transparency from now on and to work closely with patients, families, and legal representatives to rebuild trust and accountability.”

Dr Jo Beahan, medical director at the NHS trust, said: “We apologise unreservedly to patients and their families affected by the failures identified in the ERCP service review. The care provided to some of the patients who underwent the procedure was not at the level that we strive for. ERCP is a specialist type of endoscopy undertaken to diagnose and treat problems in the liver, gallbladder, bile ducts, and pancreas. Less than 5% of endoscopies performed in the UK are ERCP.

“It carries well-recognised risks, and patients requiring an ERCP procedure may have complex underlying health conditions which are considered life limiting such as frailty or patients who have an underlying inoperable cancer. The Trust suspended the ERCP service in July 2021 when concerns were raised.

"Overall, we have reviewed over 950 ERCP procedures and the care of 68 patients has been reviewed by independent experts. The care provided to 58 of these patients was identified as not being provided to an acceptable standard, with 25 of these patients experiencing a level of harm.

"The Trust has contacted the patients or their relatives whose care has been independently reviewed, including those where no harm was found. We have apologised and explained the findings of the review. We will continue to support patients and families on an individual basis to ensure they have the opportunity to understand the care they or their relative received. We are aware that this may cause concern for other patients who have been treated at the Trust."

He added that anyone with concerns about their care in endoscopy can contact the Trust’s Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) on your.experience@nhs.net or 01709 424461.