Bethany Shipsey (pictured), 21, suffered from severe mental health issues after being emotionally abused
A grieving father whose daughter died after bungling medics failed to treat her as a priority has discovered more than 130 ‘serious incidents’ at the same hospital.
Bethany Shipsey, 21, suffered from severe mental health issues after being emotionally abused, sexually assaulted and raped by her ex-boyfriend Barry Finch.
Finch, 23, was convicted of rape and jailed for six years in August last year.
Bethany – on home leave from a psychiatric ward at the time of her death – was rushed to Worcestershire Royal Hospital on February 15 after collapsing at home.
She had taken 2,4-Dinitrophenol weight loss pills, known as DNP, that she bought online from a Ukrainian supplier.
Bethany died on a hospital trolley, having been moved three times in 20 minutes after ‘overwhelmed’ staff failed to treat her as a priority.
Her devastated parents slammed medics, claiming her life could have been saved if she had been treated sooner.
Bethany – on home leave from a psychiatric ward at the time of her death – was rushed to Worcestershire Royal Hospital on February 15 after collapsing at home
Her devastated parents (pictured) slammed medics, claiming her life could have been saved if she had been treated sooner
Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust, which runs the hospital, had been told by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) that it needed to make ‘significant improvements’ days before Bethany’s death.
Her father Doug, 57, has now uncovered a string of blunders at the hospital after he made a Freedom of Information request.
The hospital recorded 136 ‘serious incidents’ there between December 1, 2016 and September 30 this year.
A ‘serious incident’ is one that can cause harm to a patient, including acts or omissions in care that can result in unexpected or avoidable death or serious harm.
Shockingly, as a result of these incidents, 24 patients died – including Bethany.
Mr Shipsey, who lives in Worcester, said: ‘The Worcestershire Royal Hospital already has an unacceptably high mortality rate.
‘The CQC’s reports and warnings have cited that patients’ safety is at risk, particularly in the A&E department. Another winter is almost upon us – so what has been done by the trust to remedy the situation in time for this winter?
‘The new management has already had eight months to make changes, but still there is no difference. So, when will this Third World treatment of our most vulnerable citizens end?’
Speaking shortly after her death, Bethany’s mum Carol, 57, a nurse with 39 years’ experience, said: ‘Beth looked at me and just called my name.
‘That was the last time she actually spoke and she just called, “Mum, Mum, Mum”.
Finch (pictured), 23, was convicted of rape and jailed for six years in August last year
‘Unbeknownst to us she had obviously stored some of the pills upstairs and she went upstairs and took them.
‘She alerted somebody on the internet that she took them. I’m struggling to even believe it myself that [the hospital] did nothing.
‘It was inadequate care, lack of dignity. There was no communication with the parents until Beth had a cardiac arrest.
‘She was not seen as a priority. We want answers for Beth.’
Dr Suneil Kapadia, chief medical officer of Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, said: ‘We encourage all staff to report any concerns they may have about issues affecting the quality of care we provide for our patients.
‘We investigate those concerns thoroughly, and share the lessons learned widely across our trust.
‘Sometimes, our investigations reveal issues that are of such concern that we report them as serious incidents.
‘While some of these incidents may relate to the care of patients who subsequently die, this does not necessarily mean that their death is directly related to, or caused by, the issue that has been reported.
‘We strive to review all cases where patients die while in our hospital, whether or not there have been any concerns raised about their care.
‘This is one of a package of measures we have in place to help us continuously improve the quality and safety of the care we provide for our patients.’
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