Discovery of father's medical records 'greatest gift'

Cheyenne Usher said the news that her father's medical records were still available "sent shockwaves" through her family

The daughter of a man believed to be affected by the infected blood scandal said the discovery of his medical records was the "greatest gift anyone could have given us".

Cheyenne Usher was 16 when her father, Gavin Usher, 48, died from liver disease in 2013.

He contracted hepatitis C after he received a blood transfusion in 1984, however, Ms Usher and her brother Queste had struggled to get the paperwork to prove their father had received contaminated blood.

The Hepatitis C Trust said eight out of 10 people affected by the infected blood scandal could have difficulty proving a case for compensation due to medical records not being kept.

Contaminated blood has led to the deaths of more than 3,000 people - 30,000 were infected with hepatitis C and HIV after being given blood and blood products in the 1970s and 1980s.

Mr Usher from Stevenage, Hertfordshire, had received a transfusion at the Lister Hospital in Stevenage after suffering serious injuries in an assault.

At first his family thought his medical records had been lost, but after the hospital was contacted by the BBC, the trust that runs it said his records had been located in storage and were "still available".

Justin Daniels, medical director of the East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, said: "Whilst it is standard practice to destroy adult medical records eight years after a patient's last treatment, in April 2019 the Infected Blood Inquiry requested that trusts do not destroy the medical records of relevant patients who have died.

"Mr Usher’s medical records are still available, and we encourage the family to get in touch. We apologise for any wrong information given to Gavin’s family about his records."

Gavin Usher was diagnosed with hepatitis C a few years after his son Queste was born

'Terrifying losing a parent'

The family can now move towards applying for compensation.

Ms Usher added: "I do want to be excited for this and be hopeful, but I am also still under the thought that it [compensation] could be snatched [away]. It's sent a shockwave through our family."

She said if granted, she would like to put some of it towards training to become a child psychologist.

Speaking about her career ambitions she said growing up without her dad she "completely fell through the net" and she does not want that to "happen to anyone".

"It is terrifying losing a parent... when you have someone who disappeared off the face of the world... you have to make a difference," she told BBC News.

"It is so lonely. It doesn't have to be lonely there are so many of us... there's not just one person affected by this inquiry it's thousands upon thousands."