Doctor 'betrayed' over son's death at her hospital

William Hewes died of sepsis less than 24 hours after he arrived at hospital

A doctor who rushed her seriously ill son to the east London hospital where she worked, and where he later died of sepsis, says she feels "betrayed" by the way her family were treated.

William Hewes, 22, died within 24 hours of being admitted to Homerton University Hospital after his meningitis developed into sepsis in January 2023.

Dr Deborah Burns said she had repeatedly queried the speed of his treatment and has since been unable to "go back and work for an organisation that doesn't acknowledge its errors and learn from them".

A coroner has criticised the hospital but said she could not conclude if earlier treatment would have saved Mr Hewes. The hospital said it would learn from what happened.

Mr Hewes became unwell at about 13:30 GMT on 20 January and said he felt cold and had a headache.

His condition deteriorated during the afternoon and he got up after going to bed that night to tell his mother he felt very unwell and had bruising on his belly.

Suspecting meningococcal sepsis, his mother rang the hospital emergency department to warn them she and her son were on the way.

William Hewes (r) was the youngest of his siblings, Theo, Edward and Emily

While at the hospital Dr Burns – who was a specialist in paediatrics at Homerton University Hospital – said she had asked staff on eight separate occasions if they had given him antibiotics.

"I wasn't clock-watching but I knew they were not given straight away," she said.

"I thought the nurse was prioritising other things, medication to treat his symptoms. It wasn't medication that was going to change the outcome of what he had."

Giving evidence during the inquest, the medical staff who treated Mr Hewes said they did not recall Dr Burns asking for antibiotics eight times.

Senior coroner Mary Hassell said she accepted Dr Burns' evidence on this point, although she believed hospital staff were not being deliberately untruthful but had not heard an instruction from the registrar to administer antibiotics and fluids, as well as medication for his symptoms.

She added that Mr Hewes did not receive the antibiotics and fluids "with the urgency that he should have".

Nevertheless, while delivering a narrative verdict she said the 22-year-old was already very unwell when he arrived at the hospital and it was not clear if he would have survived had he been treated quicker.

'I trusted them'

Following her son's death, Dr Burns was told that Homerton University Hospital was going to investigate what happened.

But months later she learned they had decided against an inquiry, as "there were no delays, there weren't any concerns about his treatment".

She told the BBC she "couldn't understand why no investigation had been done... and also why I hadn't been informed of the outcome".

Dr Burns added she had been unable to return to work as she had planned, due to the way she says the hospital has treated her family since her son's death.

"I am now much more aware of the deeply ingrained, defensive culture within the NHS. I trusted them, I felt betrayed," she said.

"It has been totally unnecessary. If it can happen to me, then I really worry for the general population."

She now has a diagnosis of complex grief.

"I haven't been able to walk away from this in the last two years," she explained. "And it's all deeply meshed with the loss of my very much adored youngest son."

A coroner concluded Mr Hewes (l) did not receive antibiotics "with the urgency that he should have"

The coroner said she would issue a prevention of future deaths report to Homerton University Hospital, calling on it to share the changes it had made since Mr Hewes' death.

Solicitor Deborah Nadel, who represented Dr Burns during the inquest, said: "The coroner has made it very clear yet again how concerned she is about catastrophic errors in sepsis care.

"How many more times must a coroner flag their concerns about hospital practices around sepsis, and how many more times must a lawyer flag the terrible impact on families for things to change?"

A spokesperson for Homerton Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust said Dr Burns had "told us that our policies and processes for this situation are inadequate and detached and we are determined to learn from her experience.

"This work will ensure a more personal response for staff members or members of their family who are patients here."

The trust added an action plan had been drawn up after Mr Hewes' death, with changes introduced including making sure an intensive care doctor attends the bedside of a patient with suspected sepsis and delivering further training on recognising sepsis symptoms.

How to spot sepsis

Symptoms include:

• pale, blotchy or blue skin, lips or tongue

• a rash that does not go away when you roll a glass over it (non-blanching)

• finding it hard to breathe or breathing very fast

• feeling confused or finding it harder to talk that normal

• a weak, high-pitched cry that's not like normal

• being sleepier than normal or difficult to wake

If you think you or someone you look after has symptoms of sepsis, call 999 or go to A&E.

Source: NHS