A man died after an NHS trust failed to diagnose and treat sepsis quickly enough, a Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman investigation has found.

Stephen Durkin, a factory worker from Hereford, died after suffering organ failure from sepsis. The life-threatening condition occurs when the immune system overreacts to an infection, causing widespread inflammation that can damage the body’s own tissue. Stephen’s wife Michelle made a complaint to the Ombudsman after she was left floored by his sudden death which she believed was avoidable.

Stephen was an otherwise healthy 56-year-old when he attended Wye Valley Trust A&E in July 2017 with chest pain. Hospital staff suspected he had a major blood vessel blockage and admitted him to a ward overnight. The next morning his overall condition had worsened but staff did not monitor him more closely, as national guidance advises, and he continued to deteriorate throughout the day.

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