Middlesbrough hospital coma compensation an insult, woman says

A woman who fell into a diabetic coma following cancer surgery says a hospital trust’s offer of £1,500 compensation is an “insult”.

Katherine Ashton, 60, had major surgery at Middlesbrough’s James Cook University Hospital in October 2022 and previously said she had flagged her condition “every step of the way”.

She said she was now committed to pursuing the case through the courts to reveal “the truth” of what had happened to her.

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (STHNFT) said it had offered Mrs Ashton compensation in line with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s recommendations.

Mrs Ashton, who has the genetic MODY3 form of diabetes, described how she was constantly throwing up in the days after the operation.

She said she felt she had been “completely abandoned” and had struggled to keep medication down.

Just 10 days after the operation, she fell into a coma and said she had been “an hour from dying”.

The STHNFT previously said it was likely her coma had been linked to the post-operative administration of a medication known to carry the risk of diabetic ketoacidosis, a dangerous complication of diabetes.

In the years since, Mrs Ashton has tried to find out what went wrong and why.

She explained there had been three internal investigations and they were offered a fourth.

She said: “In the delay that these investigations have caused, we have received an apology from Stacey Hunter, the CEO of the trust, confirming there was a missed opportunity and they accept full liability for that.

“We were reassured when we met her in her office that we would now be talking about some form of compensation for accountability.

“This is not just about money, it is about holding the trust accountable for their actions.”

Mrs Ashton said being offered £1,500 in compensation for nearly dying was an insult.

She is now exploring the legal options of taking the case forward.

The 60-year-old said: “It is only when somebody dies that people stand up and pay attention.

“I nearly did and I’m not letting go. It is not going to be easy.

“All I want is the truth. Somebody has to stand up for patients.”

A spokesperson for the trust said: “We would like to offer our sincere apologies to Mrs Ashton for elements of our complaint-handling process which fell short of the high standards we strive to achieve.

“The trust has been in communication with Mrs Ashton and provided a sum of compensation for the handling of her complaint in line with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s recommendations.”