Stillborn baby’s mother told: ‘Take paracetamol’
A PREGNANT woman gave birth to a stillborn child five days after an NHS 24 nurse told her to take paracetomol for the pain she was suffering.
A hearing yesterday learned that Patricia Pillar had been told there was ‘reduced foetal movement’, yet she told the woman to ‘call NHS 24 back’ if the pain got any worse.
She also failed to ask the appropriate questions of a patient who would suffer a stroke the following day, provided the wrong answers for a man complaining of severe groin pain, and failed to assess the cardiac symptoms of a patient who suffered a heart attack.
Mrs Pillar has accepted a total of five charges brought against her at a Nursing and Midwifery Council hearing in Edinburgh, and could face being struck off the register.
All of the charges relate to the time between July 2010 to December 2013 when Mrs Pillar was employed by NHS 24 as a nurse practitioner at the Clydebank contact centre.
Clinical services manager William Togneri, who trains new NHS 24 call handlers and carries out investigations into their conduct, told the hearing how the woman who Mrs Pillar told to take paracetomol gave birth to a stillborn child five days after the phone call.
He said: ‘Patricia tried to preempt what the midwife would have done.
‘She should have recommended her to contact the hospital or a midwife as this was beyond the scope of a nurse practitioner.
‘On July 3, patient C called back and said there had been no foetal movement in 24 hours. She also explained a pressure pain at the top of the hips and was told to see a midwife. The baby was stillborn on July 6, 2012. Due to the seriousness of the case, a review panel was set up to look into it. From the symptoms described, the patient should have been recommended to their local maternity services.’
NHS 24 general manager Mark Kelly described to the panel how Mrs Pillar had failed to explore the possibility of a stroke in a patient who then suffered one a day later. He said: ‘In September 2013, the patient’s son called to report that his mother was experiencing weakness in the right side of her body and was also taking medication for shingles.
‘Patricia recommended to alter the dosage of medication to treat her shingles and to speak to her GP or call back if the symptoms worsen. She did not use the algorithm or ask the appropriate questions. She attributed the pain to shingles and did not explore the possibility of a stroke.
‘She recommended that she see her GP within 36 hours. The next day it was reported that the patient had had a stroke.’
Caroline Spence was general manager at the Clydebank contact centre where Mrs Pillar worked. She told how Mrs Pillar ‘missed red flags’ from a patient who would go on to suffer a heart attack.
‘Cardiac symptoms are one of the most serious for a nurse practitioner to deal with,’ she said. ‘She was told of chest pains and should have called an ambulance.’
Malcolm Cameron, representing Mrs Pillar at the hearing, said that she had dealt with 63,000 calls in her career ‘and the overwhelming majority would be dealt with safely and appropriately’.
Following the investigation into the December 2013 phone call, Mrs Pillar’s contract with NHS 24 was terminated on the grounds of ‘gross misconduct’.
The hearing continues.
‘Should have called an ambulance’