THE family of a grandmother who died on Mother’s Day following complications from routine surgery has criticised a lack of aftercare.

Eileen Taylor, 76, developed an infection after undergoing a knee replacement operation at Beardwood Hospital in Blackburn.

Coroner Michael Singleton ruled Mrs Taylor died from a ‘rare but recognised complication of surgery’, but acknowledged her death may have been prevented.

He said: “The tragedy in this is that there may have been an opportunity for events to have turned out differently. There may well have been misunderstandings, there may well have been a failure in recognising the severity of infection.”

Following the inquest, her family slammed her aftercare, claiming an animal would have had better care from a vet.

The inquest heard:

  • Mrs Taylor received no visits from a district nurse, leaving her 81-year-old husband to change dressings and give injections. 
  • She had to see a nurse at her health centre because her GP was ‘very busy’. 
  • Family members were forced to track down her doctor on a subsequent visit to her health centre.
  • Her relatives gave up after ringing the 111 service after being asked ‘questions and questions and questions’. 
  • She had to wait 25 minutes to be seen in A&E at Blackburn Royal while paramedics were ‘going berserk. She died hours later.

The inquest heard the NHS paid for surgery at the private hospital, carried out on February 18 by consultant orthopaedic surgeon Ravi Goyal, had been successful, and Mrs Taylor, of Carus Avenue, Darwen was allowed home three days later.

After previous operations Mrs Taylor had been visited by district nurses, but this time her husband Thomas, 81, had to change her dressings and administer blood-thinning injections.

A week after she returned home, her knee started to become painful, hot and red and the wound began to weep.

The inquest was told her family phoned Beardwood Hospital to inform Mr Goyal they suspected she had developed an infection, but were advised by nurses to contact the family GP.

On March 4, the couple visited Darwen Health Centre, but were told Mrs Taylor’s GP, Dr Anthony Hirst, was ‘very busy’, and she was seen by a nurse, who prescribed antibiotics.

Dr Hirst told the hearing he later telephoned Mrs Taylor at home and asked her to take her temperature.

He did not recommend further treatment.

Mrs Taylor returned to the Health Centre two days later and the family insisted upon seeing Dr Hirst.

When he was unavailable, they ‘went upstairs’ to find him.

The hearing was told the GP examined her knee and noted ‘evidence of an infection’. He told the inquest he could not recall if he took her temperature.

He decided no further treatment beyond the antibiotics was needed.

Mrs Taylor went back home where she went ‘from bad to worse’, her husband told the hearing.

On Mothers’ Day, she became so ill her family called the NHS 111 non-emergency number.

Her son Steven, 45, told the inquest: “It was carrying on. They asked questions and questions and questions.”

The family then called an ambulance and ‘within minutes’ paramedics diagnosed a ‘serious infection’.

Giving evidence, her husband said there was then a delay at hospital.

He said: “It was 25 minutes before anyone came to see her and the paramedics were going berserk.

“Her oxygen levels were going down and by the time the doctors came it was too late.”

After conducting a post-mortem examination, consultant histopathologist Richard John Prescott ruled the original surgery had been ‘correctly executed’, but Mrs Taylor had died from septicaemia caused by a superficial but serious blood-borne infection, which had entered her body through the wound.

Following the inquest Steven Taylor said: “She’d had major surgery, and the aftercare on coming out of hospital was disgraceful. An animal has better care from a vet.”

Also speaking after the hearing Lynn Wissett, chief nurse at Blackburn Royal, said: “We offer our sincere condolences to Mrs Taylor’s family.

“The care and safety of our patients is our overriding priority. We have not been contacted by the family or had any issues raised with us.

We would encourage the family to raise any concerns directly with us in order for us to respond to them and answer any questions they may have.”

A spokesman for NHS England, speaking on behalf of Darwen Health Centre, said: “We are very sorry that this has happened. If the family wish to make a complaint they can do so through NHS England.”