Marina Fagan
22 Apr 2016 · Coroner R Brittain · London Inner North
The coroner's concerns
1. delayed MRI request for headache persisting on 19 September
“heard evidence from the neurologist who treated Ms [name redacted] that, had the headache been persisting on 19 September (which was unclear from the evidence), then he would have expected to be involved in her care, He went on to state that an MRI would have been requested on that day. He also set out his expectation that neurology input should have been initiated after Ms [name redacted] developed confusion on 26 September, at which point an MRI would also have been requested. However, it was clear from his evidence”
2. insufficient neurologists for specialist care
“his concer that, nationwide, there are insuffient neurologists to provide necessary specialist care. He noted that in the out of hours setting, although there were neurologists available the nearby tertiary care hospital, none were on-call in the hospital to which Ms [name redacted] was initially admitted”
3. 72 day waiting time for neurologist outpatient appointment
“current waiting time to see a neurologist in the outpatient setting, is 72 days”
4. future deaths from similar neurological delays
“future deaths will occur in similar circumstances”
Responses
2016-0162-Response-by-Department-of-Health.pdf ↗· Department of Health and Social Care
Stated action
“I note your concerns about the availability of neurologists locally and nationally. You had particular concerns about the time taken to see a neurologist in an outpatient setting and the availability of on-call neurologists in hospitals. It is the responsibility of providers to ensure that they have appropriate staffing levels to meet the needs of their patients. The availability of neurologists locally is therefore for Barts Health NHS Trust to address.”