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Please help me to understand

Posted , 6 users are following.

jayne60554
jayne60554

Hello, I'm in a state of confusion at the moment. My normally fit and healthy mum was taken ill very suddenly after a meal out and diagnosed the same night with pancreatitis. Unbelievably 6 days later she had died. I just cannot get my head around it. She was, at first, on a normal ward and we all thought it was nothing too serious and that fluids and pain relief would mean a week or two in hospital and everything would be ok. 24 hours later mum developed fluid on the lungs and needed an oxygen mask. A further 24 hours later she was in the High Dependancy unit and on a pap c mask. Another 24 hours she was in intensive care and fully ventilated! Her deterioration was ridiculously fast and the docs turned off her life support 2 days later. She did have 75% damage to her pancreas and it was necrotic. She also developed SIRS which meant multiple organ failure but I just don't understand how this all happened over 6 days when she had no previous symptoms. She was not a little old lady. She cooked for herself, kept her own house, had a really healthy eating plan, was not over weight and was active daily. I am really struggling and the docs at the hospital haven't offered any explanation as to why her condition was so severe and so sudden either. I may be clutching at straws but when A&E diagnosed pancreatitis on the first evening they transferred her to another hospital to a general surgery ward. Unfortunately the pancreas was so badly damaged already that she needed an op to remove but when we were told this after 2 days the hospital advised that they couldn't do it but she was by then too ill to be transferred to the specialist for pancreatitis at a nearby hospital. If A&E had transferred her to the correct hospital initially and they'd operated the next day, she surely might have made it? Or am I being naive? Is it worth persuing? I don't want monetary compensation of any kind, the hospital staff were amazing and that certainly is not my motivation but I just need answers as I'm driving my self crazy in case something could have been done that wasn't. 

0 likes, 13 replies

13 Replies

  • stuart13
    stuart13 jayne60554

    Posted

    Hello Jayne

    i am really sorry to hear about your mother and fully understand your distress.

    Unfortunatelly with an attack of acute pancreatitis symptoms can worsen very quickly and it can be fatal because of multi organ failure. It doesn't follow that there was anything wrong with your mums care at the hospital.

    It it is such a shame that the hospital has been more communicative with an explanation. 

    Each hospital has PALS. Give the hospital a ring and ask to speak to someone from PALS, explain the situation and I feel sure they will look into things for you.

    Best wishes.

     

  • stuart13
    stuart13 jayne60554

    Posted

    If you search on here Acute Pancreatitis it gives an explanation of what can happen.
  • robin0
    robin0 jayne60554

    Posted

    Hi Jane very sorry to hear of your loss. The problem with acute pancreatitis it can happen without ryhme or reason. It can be what is called idiopathic which is the same as myself. I like your dear mother was fit and healthy before my first attack which nearly finished me as the doctors had no idea what was causing it all the can do is pain relief.

    As for understanding even the so called doctors have no idea as. it is a very little researched disease. Myself I have been campaigning to get disease more notice and research.

    I have also filed a complaint with PALS andd to be honest it has been a farce but you have to fight to get answers I have now handed the complaint to the parliamentary ombudsman.

    I am sorry for your loss

  • jayne60554
    jayne60554

    Posted

    Thanks to all for taking the time to respond.  I don't want to complain, the staff at the hospitals were all wonderful, caring people.  I just want a few answers and I think I need to start at the A&E dept as my biggest concern is that she was transfered to an incorrect hopsital which was not used to dealing with pancreatitis.  There is a specialist hospital a mere 5 miles further which would, in my opinion. been the better option but there may well be an explanation why they chose not to send her there initially.  Thank you all, I tuly appreciate it.
    • stuart13
      stuart13 jayne60554

      Posted

      Not all acute attacks turn out like your Mum's and although I agree with you it would have been better, unfortunately they don't always have available beds at the specialist centres.
  • Emis_Moderator
    Emis_Moderator jayne60554

    Posted

    I have deleted the argumentative posts in this discussion.

    If discussions are breaking down due to conflicts or users are getting offensive please use the report link to draw them to our attention. Do not get involved in tit for tat arguments or name calling in the forums, all this does is discourage other users from joining in or replying.

    • jayne60554
      jayne60554 Emis_Moderator

      Posted

      I didn't get involved in any arguments so don't like this post which seems to suggest that I did !
  • janet69451
    janet69451 jayne60554

    Posted

    Hello Jayne. 

    My heart breaks for you hearing about your Mum. At least they did something for her. I didn't know how dangerous this condition can be until I started surfing the web. I live in the U. S. And they know nothing I went out of the blue with a extreme painful stomach ache in Oct 2014 to the ER my Liapse was over 20,000 and they were going to send me home after four hours and lots of pain meds my husband convinced them to keep me. I spent four days in the hospital and on the fourth day was told well you can eat jello so you need to go home my Lipase was still 700 at that time now the specialist says since my pancreas wasn't rested completely it is now damaged. I have chronic pancreatitis and need enzymes pills just to keep food down. I've lost 43 pounds and still losing even though the docs don't want me too my so far is idiopathic they can not find a cause. They won't take my gallbladder out because the test on it is fine and they won't do an ERCP cause it's too dangerous right now No doctors understand this and if it wasn't for my family trying to help me get through this I would have committed suicide. The everyday pain is trying and before enzymes the nausea and vomiting was awful. So after saying all that sometimes there are no answers and we have to move on. I am hoping maybe we can get doctors to start researching this problem more so they can help their patients better then just saying I don't know. For us that is still here and suffering its a struggle everyday just to get through the day and YES I would love to have answers instead of being in the dark on what caused this problem. My prayers are with you to find peace and clarity.

    • jayne60554
      jayne60554 janet69451

      Posted

      Hi Janet, thanks for replying and I am so sorry that you are going through an awful time. I hope that your symptoms ease soon as it must be terrible to be in so much pain.  God bless you and thinking of you.
    • cathy31644
      cathy31644 jayne60554

      Posted

      Jayne,

      You must be feeling very shocked and numb with greif.Everything happened so fast .I just wanted to say have you thought about your own needs,perhaps a dereavement counselling service/charity might be able to help and support you.This is not said to distract from what happened and the answers you seek,but to care for you.

    • jayne60554
      jayne60554 cathy31644

      Posted

      Yes, I think I have been walking around in a daze since all this happened. I have to go back to work this week so maybe this will prove to be a welcome distraction - thank you for taking the time to reply. X
  • jean37082
    jean37082 jayne60554

    Posted

    Dear Jayne so sorry about this.Hope when you think of your mum later that you think of her as the person she was and not how things developed. I know it's hard when you loose someone so quick .Just think about the good times with her and maybe you will find some comfort..Take care  J
    • jayne60554
      jayne60554 jean37082

      Posted

      Thank you Jean. I am trying hard to replace the image of mum in ICU with the many happy images I have of her. It will take some time but I will get there. Thank you x
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