Hi again, thanks for reply, I have been venting my spleen to all who will listen since last December and still massively frustrated. My son Rob, who was super fit and a sports mad tennis coach developed inflamatory bowel disease in Oct14. He was 27 then and the picture of health but even though he was lucky at first and was seen by a specialist and put on strong steroids etc he soon deteriorated quickly and went into hosp vias A&E in Dec14. The local hosp was so variable in their care that we soon became aware that luck played a part in his treatment. After 24 days he was sent home , his body and mind changed forever, lucky to be alive. He had life saving surgery 2 days before christmas and then 9 days in critical care. If only we could turn back time and ask the riight questions, but then we shouldnt hav to be more informed than the medics should we?
DVT was mentioned on the afternoon after surgery when it was mentioned as 1 of the many conditions he might develop aswell as the the peritonitis he was battling. 14 days later he was good to go home as he was MOBILE!! No other info given, letter of discharge had empty box where anti coagulation was meant to be risk assessed and decided upon. How mobile can you be when you have just had 37 staples removed from abdo, lost 2 1/2 stone, immuno suppressed from strong steroids, almost no muscle left ,anaemic and almost completely bed bound for 24 days.
Also we know now that the original disease, IBD, leads to sticky blood. None of these were ever mentioned and no family details were taken even though his grandad had severe DVT. I certainly consider that the medics had 24 days and hundreds of opportunities to risk assess him for DVT but the only records we have are 2 assessments done on the computer on day 1, in A&E and then on the first ward ( of many).
As I have read so many times on other posts, when Rob 1st had pains in the back of his calf he thought it was a pulled muscle as he was doing his best to walk each day and get fit again. It wasnt until he had been home 14 days that his leg swelled enormously and DVT was unmissable. He went back into hosp for another 14 days, it took him 3 days to straighten his leg and weight bare, walking with the help of walker. To see my boy looking like a skeleton, stooped and wasted away not able to walk was so depressing.
He is 10 months on and so much better apart from the pain and swelling from the post thrombotic syndrome. As I mentioned in last post he will see Mr Stephen Blacks team at Guys in London on the 17th. I am so hoping that his circulation will improve and he can feel more positive over his future. If the treatment isnt appropriate now then I have faith that the future will bring us progress as these problems affect so many people worldwide.
Seeing that there is meant to be a major national drive by the NHS to prevent DVT and VTE, especially when hosp acquired then why are there so many mistakes. My experience is that the medics dont take resposibility and so leave it to others to assess and make decisions. In my sons hosp the junior docs are meant to assess and prescribe anti coagulents if required.
We are awaiting a reply to the 2nd formal complaint having sent in another when the response to the negligent DVT assessment was 1 sentence stating that he wasnt considered a high risk. All of the above symptoms are according to the NICE guidelines judged to be high risk.!! So even though he was supposedly risk assessed, even though there is only evidence of 2 on day 1, they got it wrong. We asked 1 consultant, 1 doctor and 1 sister on the ward when he was in with the DVT why he wasnt anti coagulated and they gave 3 different answers, he might have a bleed, he wasnt at high risk and he was mobile.
Our major complaint is that they didnt risk assess throughout his stay, they didnt speak to him about the risk and the signs of DVT and no-one discussed his medical reasons with each other which certainly indicated he was at high risk.
As you said they didnt join the dots and I feel bad that we didnt ask about DVT but as it hadnt been mentioned for 13 days we didnt bring it up as we thought he had dodged a bullet.
We have 700 pages of hosp notes with not a single word about DVT. I went to an open monthly meeting to the hosp to ask questions and they couldnt explain why there was only 1 risk assessment, held on the computer which wasnt given to us unless we asked. I think we will be proven to be right about negligence but it could take ages and I want people to know that you cannot rely on the medics to protect you, you have to arm yourself with info so that you can ask the right questions.
I feel now that Id like to speak to a junior doctor to ask what they do in practice to assess for DVT risk and who takes responsibility before discharge. There are so many questions and so few answers. Frustration doesnt cover it.
Good luck to all!
