Blogger's Note:
I thought long and hard about including this in the blog, but decided the dangers of Paracetamol (Acetaminophen, Tylenol), even in therapeutic dosage, are not as well known as they should be.
Paul Cassell
March 08, 2011
A psychiatrist admitted medics at Prospect Park Hospital gave too much medication to a suicidal woman who was later found dead after taking an overdose.
Dr Giovanni Borghini made the frank confession at an inquest into the death of Bridget Proctor at Reading Civic Centre last Tuesday, to the amazement of Mrs Proctor’s daughters Suzanne and Beverley.
The 59-year-old was found dead by a care team from the Tilehurst hospital with several packets of medication by her side in the bedroom of her home in Shilling Close, Tilehurst, on Thursday, April 1, last year.
The inquest heard she had been given two weeks’ worth of medication, predominantly paracetamol, from staff at Prospect Park instead of three days. A failure in communication meant she was given her full allocation.
Giving evidence, Dr Borghini said: “I must say in this case the initial plan was to give her no more than three days of medication and hand over the rest of the supply to the home treatment team.
“The reason why that hasn’t happened is because of a mistake for which I take full responsibility.”
Dr Borghini admitted it was the only mistake he had made in his career and what had happened had reflected on him, the staff and the hospital. He added that lessons had been learned to ensure this could never happen again.
The inquest heard Mrs Proctor had suffered with fibromyalgia, a muscle pain common with psychiatric conditions such as depression and anxiety and stress-related disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder. Dr Borghini explained there was no known cure for the condition and it was generally treated with painkillers.
He confirmed that Mrs Proctor had suffered with depression for many years and was on a range of medication.
In 2000 Mrs Proctor took a large overdose of prescribed medication and spent time at Prospect Park. After a period of review doctors had no major concerns and she was discharged.
Last March she told her family she was “considering ending it all” and was readmitted to the hospital, where she remained for two weeks during which time she underwent treatment and observation.
Doctors agreed she could be discharged early and provided her with two weeks’ worth of medication, having intended to give her enough for three days and arrange for the rest to be administered on a daily basis by the home care team.
A toxicology report revealed Mrs Proctor had a high level of paracetamol, along with antidepressant codine and lamotrigine, an antiepileptic drug used to treat bipolar disorder.
Blood tests further revealed the paracetamol had most likely caused liver failure.
Recording a narrative verdict, the coroner Peter Bedford said Mrs Proctor died from aspiration pneumonia caused by a combination of toxicity from the deliberate digestion of codine, lamotrigine and paracetamol against a background of depression.
He added she had been mistakenly given two weeks medication even though she remained a potential risk of taking an overdose and “an opportunity had been presented to her” to take her own life.
paulcassell@trinitysouth.co.uk
http://www.getreading.co.uk/news/s/2088945_doctor_i_gave_wrong_dosage
Dr Giovanni Borghini made the frank confession at an inquest into the death of Bridget Proctor at Reading Civic Centre last Tuesday, to the amazement of Mrs Proctor’s daughters Suzanne and Beverley.
The 59-year-old was found dead by a care team from the Tilehurst hospital with several packets of medication by her side in the bedroom of her home in Shilling Close, Tilehurst, on Thursday, April 1, last year.
The inquest heard she had been given two weeks’ worth of medication, predominantly paracetamol, from staff at Prospect Park instead of three days. A failure in communication meant she was given her full allocation.
Giving evidence, Dr Borghini said: “I must say in this case the initial plan was to give her no more than three days of medication and hand over the rest of the supply to the home treatment team.
“The reason why that hasn’t happened is because of a mistake for which I take full responsibility.”
Dr Borghini admitted it was the only mistake he had made in his career and what had happened had reflected on him, the staff and the hospital. He added that lessons had been learned to ensure this could never happen again.
The inquest heard Mrs Proctor had suffered with fibromyalgia, a muscle pain common with psychiatric conditions such as depression and anxiety and stress-related disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder. Dr Borghini explained there was no known cure for the condition and it was generally treated with painkillers.
He confirmed that Mrs Proctor had suffered with depression for many years and was on a range of medication.
In 2000 Mrs Proctor took a large overdose of prescribed medication and spent time at Prospect Park. After a period of review doctors had no major concerns and she was discharged.
Last March she told her family she was “considering ending it all” and was readmitted to the hospital, where she remained for two weeks during which time she underwent treatment and observation.
Doctors agreed she could be discharged early and provided her with two weeks’ worth of medication, having intended to give her enough for three days and arrange for the rest to be administered on a daily basis by the home care team.
A toxicology report revealed Mrs Proctor had a high level of paracetamol, along with antidepressant codine and lamotrigine, an antiepileptic drug used to treat bipolar disorder.
Blood tests further revealed the paracetamol had most likely caused liver failure.
Recording a narrative verdict, the coroner Peter Bedford said Mrs Proctor died from aspiration pneumonia caused by a combination of toxicity from the deliberate digestion of codine, lamotrigine and paracetamol against a background of depression.
He added she had been mistakenly given two weeks medication even though she remained a potential risk of taking an overdose and “an opportunity had been presented to her” to take her own life.
paulcassell@trinitysouth.co.uk
http://www.getreading.co.uk/news/s/2088945_doctor_i_gave_wrong_dosage
