Negligence in Hospital Care: The Tragic Case of Michelle Whitehead at Millbrook Suttonashfield Hospital

Michelle Whitehead, 45, was admitted to Millbrook Suttonashfield Hospital in 2021. As a result, the mum-of-two started drinking water excessively and went into a coma, and an investigation revealed that the National Health Service had made a number of mistakes.

According to the investigation, supervision of Michelle was “inadequate” and one of the reasons was the “distraction of staff using their personal mobile phones”, which are not allowed on the ward.

The investigation revealed that on May 5, 2021, Michelle “drank water from the bathroom faucet excessively,” but doctors do not know how much the woman drank because she was not continuously monitored.

At 5.30pm that same day she was sedated and got into bed and for the next three hours staff assumed she was asleep.

The investigation found that nursing staff did not respond quickly enough to Michelle’s breathing problems.

The woman likely died on May 7, 2021 from “fatal brain injury caused by acute water overhydration resulting in very low sodium levels.”

The inquest said Michelle’s excessive water drinking was caused by an undiagnosed case of psychogenic polydipsia, a symptom of which is excessive water intake.

2023-11-26 07:38:33
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