A cancer patient from Bedminster, UK died after receiving a dose of chemotherapy drugs that is larger than appropriate.
The Bristol hospital where the treatment was given admitted the incident and has already sent a letter of apology to the patient's partner, who is now pursuing a compensation claim worth £100,000 (about $150,000).
Robert Trivett initially experienced chronic back pain. He went to a general practitioner, who told him that he has sciatica. The pain continued to intensify and the 49-year-old builder was later diagnosed to have cancer. He was recommended to undergo surgery to remove two tumors on his back.
Trivett had his operation at the Southmead Hospital in Bristol. He recovered from the surgery well and was later transferred to Bristol Oncology and Haematology Centre for the start of his chemotherapy sessions.
Chemotherapy looked like it only made Trivett's condition worse. He experienced diarrhea and his legs started to swell.
Before Trivett passed away, his partner Amanda Goodwin stayed during the whole night to look after him. At around 6:00 a.m., the nurses told her to leave.
Goodwin went home and phoned the hospital at around 10:00 a.m. When she asked about Trivett's condition, she was told that her partner was then sitting up and eating porridge.
An hour later, Goodwin received a call telling her that Trivett had died. She was told that the staff did everything they could to save the patient but did not survive.
"The nurse was crying and I was screaming down the phone, 'no, no, no'," said Goodwin.
The details of Trivett's death remained unclear for about three weeks. Dr. Jeremy Braybrooke, the lead doctor of the oncology center, then contacted Goodwin to discuss an "incident."
Alan Bryan from University Hospitals Bristol NHS Trust said that they have reviewed the incident and found that Trivett was given a larger than intended dose of chemotherapy a week before he died. "I would like to express my condolences to Mr Trivett's partner following this sad death," he said.
Bryan iterated that they contacted Goodwin soon after the results of the investigations were confirmed.
United Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the center, sent a letter of apology signed by the center's general manager Sophie Baugh. "I would like to offer my sincere apology that this has occurred and to assure you that we are taking this seriously," the letter read.
For 50-year-old Goodwin, the worst part of the incident is that her partner was getting better at Southmead, but when he was transferred to the infirmary, things got bad. She described his partner as really good and handsome. For her, the death of Trivett took away her life too.
Photo: Mark M. Newell PhD | Flickr
