Mother died after sepsis 'mistaken for sprain'

Shahida Begum's husband Mohammed Rahman wants "lessons to be learned" from her death

A mother-of-two died after her symptoms of sepsis were mistaken for a muscle sprain, an inquest has heard.

Shahida Begum died at Newham University Hospital in east London in 2018, a day after complaining of a red rash, pain in her side, dizziness and coughing.

A coroner concluded that if Mrs Begum had been sent to A&E following an initial screening "it is likely her death would have been avoided".

Her husband, Mohammed Rahman, has called for "lessons to be learned".

Mrs Begum, 39, felt unwell and went to an out-of-hours GP on 3 July, where she was told it was nothing to be concerned about, the inquest heard.

Five days later, her condition deteriorated so her husband took her to Newham University Hospital and was directed to the GP service.

Mrs Begum was given painkillers and discharged on 9 July.

The next day she collapsed, but was then diagnosed with sepsis and died from multiple organ failure.

Shahida Begum died at Newham University Hospital

At Walthamstow Coroner's Court, senior coroner Nadia Persaud concluded that "on the balance of probabilities" Mrs Begum would have survived if she had been directed to A&E on 9 July.

She said Mrs Begum's symptoms "should have triggered further clinical observation and investigation".

The coroner will prepare a prevention of future deaths report asking Newham GP Co-operative and the NHS Trust how they will work together to make improvements.

Mr Rahman has called for better measures to be introduced.

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"It seemed to happen so suddenly and I did not have time to come to terms with what had happened," he said.

"It is still difficult to think that my wife and the mother of my children would still be alive if her symptoms had been diagnosed sooner.

"We wouldn't wish this pain on anyone else."

A joint statement from the trust and the GP Co-operative said: "We will work with our partners to learn from this sad event, including raising awareness of how to spot the signs of sepsis.

"Our thoughts are with Mrs Begum's loved ones."