54-year-old Azrum Begum was told to “stop being a baby” by annoyed BRI nurses after she cried in pain
An inquest heard last week how a mother-of-three went to Bradford Royal Infirmary for a routine gall bladder surgery but passed away ‘after surgeons had left holes in her stomach’.
Azrum Begum, 54, from Bradford, died in ‘astronomical pain’ after the operation turned into a disaster, which lead to multiple organ failure after a series of errors in the operation.
Damage had been caused by a pen-like instrument used during gall bladder surgery, which led to her death two days after the procedure.
The hearing heard how Mrs Begum, was chided by nurses who told her to ‘stop being a baby and grow up’.
They added that the staff on the ward, annoyed by Mrs Begum’s cries of pain, refused to give her more medication and switched off her bedside bell to reach medical staff.
The nurses later annoyed by cries of pain had refused to give Mrs Begum medication.
Mrs Begum’s grieving son Mohammed Faraz told the inquest that his mother had been left in ‘astronomical pain’.
He explained that because of his mother’s rheumatoid arthritis she had a high pain threshold but she was behaving like a child after the operation.
Mrs Begum’s eldest son, Mohammed Ayaz, said: “It was like the nurses were calling my mum a wimp.
“One nurse even said to her, “Come on now, I’ve had this operation and it wasn’t so bad.””
It was not until the morning after the operation that nurses alerted staff and an urgent CT scan was ordered.
Communication break-downs meant Mrs Begum’s surgical team were not informed the mother was being kept in hospital because of pain, and so she did not get a post-operative review after surgery.
Meanwhile, Mrs Begum’s urgent scan was delayed by hours after a porter couldn’t find her after she was moved to another ward.
Coroner Dominic Bell said there had been a catalogue of deficiencies in care given to Mrs Begum in her last hours.
Surgeons repaired the holes in her stomach, which the coroner concluded were most likely caused by surgical instruments in her previous operation.
Bradford Teaching Hospital Trust’s interim director Dr Robin Jeffrey expressed deep regrets for the way Mrs Begum was treated at Bradford Royal Infirmary. He said the Trust had learnt a number of lessons and made changes since Mrs Begum’s death – such as better checks on patients recovering from surgery.
Changes included supervising trainees, more observations and better checks on patients recovering from surgery.
Recording a narrative verdict, Dr Bell said there had been a number of deficiencies in care but added he was satisfied with investigations since carried out by the NHS Trust.
Mrs Begum’s family have said that they satisfied that the deficiencies in care were identified during the inquest and that they have been appropriately addressed with remedial action.
