Hospital admits death shortcomings
Updated on 08 January 2009
A hospital apologised for "shortcomings" in its conduct after it emerged a second teenager died from a brain haemorrhage while in its care.
Lauren Simmons, 17, suffered a fatal brain tumour after vital blood tests and scans to diagnose her condition were not carried out at the Medway Maritime Hospital in Gillingham, Kent.
She died in May 2005 after experiencing months of vomiting, headaches and neck pain but was told she had a virus.
A Healthcare Commission report into her death highlighted a catalogue of NHS oversights, including an "initial flawed diagnosis".
Lauren's case preceded the death of another teenager Jenna Lester, 16, of Rochester, who died nine months later from a brain haemorrhage in February 2006, after suffering similar symptoms and enduring delays for a vital scan at the hospital.
It is understood her devastated family were awarded £10,000 compensation over failures in correctly assessing Jenna's condition.
Lauren's mother Jane Simmons, who works at the hospital as a midwife, told BBC South East Today: "It's destroyed us as a family. We go on because you have to go on. We have another daughter but our lives are empty and not the same, and they never will be.
Mrs Simmons, from Gillingham, added: "But after hearing that it happened again, in such similar circumstances, and the hospital hasn't learnt their lesson, it's just brought all the anger back, and it's just unbearable really."
In a statement the Medway NHS Foundation Trust said it "would like to reiterate its sincere apologies to the Simmons family for the shortcomings in care Lauren received before she died".
It added: "Whilst nothing can compensate the Simmons family for Lauren's loss, the trust can confirm that the Healthcare Commission investigated the circumstances of the case thoroughly and that the trust has adopted the commission's recommendations which were issued in October 2006.
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