Woman died from sepsis 'as doctors argued for hours over which ward to treat her on'

A grandmother died from sepsis after doctors allegedly delayed treating the condition for 12 hours while they argued over which ward to treat her on.

Tina Hughes, 59, was rushed to A&E after developing symptoms of the life-threatening illness on September 8 last year.

But despite paramedics flagging to staff they suspected sepsis, it was not mentioned on her initial assessment at Sandwell General Hospital, in West Bromwich.

A second assessment six hours later also failed to mention sepsis while medics disagreed over whether to treat her on a surgical ward or a high dependency unit.

The grandmother-of-five was eventually transferred to the acute medical unit at 3am the next morning where sepsis was finally diagnosed.

But Ms Hughes, of Tipton, West Midlands, continued to deteriorate and was admitted to intensive care four hours later and put on a ventilator.

She died the following morning, on September 10.

A serious incident investigation report by Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust has since found there was "a delay in explicit recognition of sepsis".

Her daughter, Yvette Whitehouse, 37, said: "I don't think I'll ever get over what happened and life without my mum will never be the same again for all of us.”

The investigation found a delay in treating Ms Hughes's sepsis as well as a disagreement as to the level of care Ms Hughes needed and where she should be transferred to from A&E.

The NHS report also made a number of recommendations including training for junior doctors around sepsis.

It also concluded that if there is a disagreement over where a patient should be treated and the level of care they require, this must be escalated to a consultant.

The family has now asked lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate whether the trust could have done more to diagnose and treat her sepsis - which sees the body attack itself in response to an infection.

An inquest which will examine the circumstances around Ms Hughes death will be held at a later date.

A spokesperson for Sandwell Hospital Trust said: “Our deepest sympathies go out to Tina’s family and friends and we are working with the coroner to provide all information needed to conduct the inquest and will wait for the coroner’s finding in due course.”