Sussex hospitals trust settles with family over man's death

Ralph Sims (right) died in May 2019, five weeks after heart surgery at the Royal Sussex County Hospital

An NHS trust has apologised and reached a settlement with the family of a man who died an "unnecessary" death.

Ralph Sims died following complications five weeks after heart surgery at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton in May 2019.

His family said his death "should have been avoided".

The University Hospitals Sussex NHS Trust said Mr Sims' care "was not of the standard that he and his family should have been able to expect".

Mr Sims, 65, from Burgess Hill, experienced a sudden drop in blood pressure and irregular heart rhythm about eight hours after surgery, caused by a blood clot.

An internal NHS investigation found hospital staff failed to "recognise the significance of the fall in blood pressure", medical negligence lawyers Irwin Mitchell said.

The firm said the trust accepted he should have been taken back to the operating theatre but instead medics observed him overnight, and did not refer the case to an on-call cardiology consultant, contrary to the unit's policy.

He was in intensive care for two weeks before being transferred to a unit for a heart transplant, but was too ill to have surgery and later died.

The family said seeing Mr Sims in his final weeks was "so upsetting"

In a statement issued by Irwin Mitchell, Mr Sims' family described him as a "genuinely kind man" who "didn't deserve to suffer and die in the way he did".

"The hardest thing to try to come to terms with is that Ralph's death should have been avoided."

They added: "Whilst the trust has apologised to our family it feels hollow. Ralph's death was entirely unnecessary, and despite the issues in his care, it took the trust several years to apologise."

'Deeply sorry'

A trust spokesperson said: "We have extended our condolences, and apologies, to the Sims family for their loss and the tremendous upset they have suffered.

"The care given to Mr Sims in 2019 was not of the standard that he and his family should have been able to expect, and we are deeply sorry for that."

The settlement comes as Sussex Police investigate alleged cases of medical negligence, including about 40 people's deaths, at the hospital from 2015 to 2021.

The claims concern alleged failings in neurosurgery and general surgery.

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