‘I wanted to make sure we got justice for Barry’
DEVASTATED WIDOW SPEAKS OUT AFTER HOSPITAL APOLOGISES FOR FAILURES
THE widow of a much-loved Nottinghamshire man has spoken out after a hospital trust apologised for failings in his care following his death.
Father-of-three Barry Newton, from Mansfield, was being treated for a lung infection at King’s Mill Hospital in Sutton-in-ashfield in January 2018 when he began complaining of hallucinations thought to be brought on by antibiotics.
Early one morning he was found lying on the floor at the side of his bed, having suffered a fall.
An X-ray found that Mr Newton, who had also been diagnosed with leukaemia, had fractured his left hip in the fall. He went on to have surgery but developed several infections, including osteomyelitis and sepsis.
His wife Irene, 66, said she wouldn’t want anyone to suffer the same devastation her family did after Barry died in September 2018 at the age of 67.
Sherwood Forest Hospitals medical director David Selwyn apologised and reassured the family that “robust procedures have now been put in place”.
Mrs Newton instructed specialist medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell, who have now secured an undisclosed settlement for Mr Newton’s loved ones in connection with the fall and the injuries he suffered.
Mrs Newton said: “The last two years have been incredibly difficult for us since losing Barry. He was the most loving husband and dad, and always enjoyed spending time with his family.
“Watching Barry deteriorate so quickly was heartbreaking but he fought bravely to the end and I will always be proud of him for that.
“While nothing will change what happened, as a family we are grateful that the investigation has brought to light the failings that went on, so that these can be learned from. I wanted to make sure we got some justice for him.
“We wouldn’t want anyone else to go through the devastation we have.”
A Serious Incident Report published by Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs King’s Mill Hospital, found there was “a failure by the nursing staff caring for Mr Newton to recognise and act upon the acute onset of hallucinations and further risk assess based on this new event”.
Had staff acted, it “may have prevented” him falling, the report added.
This comes after the trust admitted a breach of duty in that Mr Newton was administered medication that “causes acute onset of hallucinations” but “no nursing intervention was completed to ensure falls prevention occurred”.
Mr Newton was admitted to hospital in early January 2018 and was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia and was told he would start chemotherapy after he was off the antibiotics.
On January 22, he told staff he was experiencing hallucinations and his daughter Rachael Newton, 41, raised concerns as her dad was in a private side room at the time and felt he should be in a bay area.
Early the following morning, Mr Newton fell out of bed and was found lying on the floor with a fractured left hip.
He had hip surgery at the beginning of February but by February 22, his wound became infected and he had a second operation, followed by a third operation in March.
He was discharged in July but continued to deteriorate and was taken to a hospice on September 25. He died the following day at John Eastwood Hospice just four days before his birthday.
Following the investigation into Mr Newton’s death, the report set out recommendations including “a full and accurate assessment of the patient’s activities and behaviour to be monitored” and that “all staff to familiarise themselves with the trust guidelines of delirium policy and enhanced patient support pathway”.
Rachael recalled her dad being upset in hospital in April.
She said: “He told me, don’t let them get away with this, don’t let this happen to someone else.
“He was crying – it was just awful. I may have let it go if he hadn’t said that.
“We can have a bit of closure now which is what we wanted.”
Paying tribute to her dad, she said: “He was a funny man – he always said it how it was.”
Nr Selwyn said: “Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust would like to apologise for the Trust’s failings in Mr Newton’s care.
“We know that this is not acceptable and is not the level of care that we aspire to provide for our patients.
“While Mr Newton’s fall occurred two years ago, our investigation findings highlighted a number of areas that we could improve the care provided for our patients and also the way in which we train our staff in these situations.
“We know that this does not change the outcome for Mr Newton’s family, but we would like to reassure them that robust procedures have now been put in place to minimise any future risks of this kind.”