85 year-old Puspa Monji died at Northwick Park Hospital after the feeding tube was incorrectly inserted into her lung instead of her stomach. The family have sued the hospital because of their negligence.
In February, Puspa Monji, was admitted at the hospital for a routine operation to repair an abdominal hernia. She was initially correctly fitted with a feeding tube as she had difficulty in swallowing. But after an x-ray of the first tube's position, a worker removed the tube and incorrectly placed a new one into her chest. Senior coroner Andrew Walker at the inquest into her death said that Puspa had died due to “consequences of medical treatment contributed to by neglect”.
Puspa's grandson, Kishan Parshotam lived with her and said that her death was a real shock to the system. He said-
“The trust hasn’t really reached out to us or apologised. They breached all deadlines for the coroner, because they can – there are no repercussions.”
Dame Jacqueline Docherty of the London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust’s chief said: “It is clear from our own internal investigation and subsequent inquest that we let Puspa Monji and her family down. We failed to follow our agreed processes and for that I am truly sorry.”
He also added that “there were many opportunities to prevent Mrs Monji’s death” saying the lack of labelling on the tube, the failure of the hospital staff to follow its own policies regarding the insertion of the tubes and the assessment of tube positioning had killed her.
Kishan confirmed that any money received from the Trust or the hospital will be donated to the charity.
