Father at 'medium risk' of developing blood clot dies after hospital fails to call him back for scan

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 12:58 PM on 8th August 2011

A father-of-three deemed at 'medium risk' of developing a dangerous blood clot died after he was sent home from hospital.
Mark Bonehill visited Hull Royal Infirmary's accident and emergency department complaining of pain in his calf.
But doctors sent him home and failed to call him back for a further scan - despite him being assessed as being at 'medium risk' of developing a deadly clot.
He was my best friend: Karen Bonehill and her children were awarded £300,000 after her husband Mark died from a blood clot
He was my best friend: Karen Bonehill and her children were awarded £300,000 after her husband Mark died from a blood clot
The 42-year-old, who was an area manager for Autoglass, died less than three weeks' later after the clot in his leg travelled to his lung.
His family have now been awarded £300,000 compensation after Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust admitted negligence.
Mr Bonehill's widow Karen, 46, said: 'What is so hard to deal with is the fact his death was entirely avoidable.
'The compensation won't bring Mark back. Mark has an 18-week-old grandchild he's never met.
'I had been with him since I was 19. He wasn't just my husband he was my best friend.'
Mark, from Hull, became worried about the pain in his leg and went to Hull Royal Infirmary in September 2008.

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A scan showed no sign of a clot at that stage. But the pain was the early signs of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a serious condition characterised by blood clots in the deep veins of the legs.
A re-scan could have detected the clot that later formed in his leg, which then dislodged and travelled to the lungs, known as a pulmonary embolism.
Karen, who has battled breast cancer since losing her husband, said Mark was not warned about the symptoms of DVT.
She said: 'We were not given a leaflet or given advice about what to look out for.
'I just wanted to know lessons had been learned and this won't happen to another family.'
Mrs Bonehill said her children, Nicholas, now 22, Gareth, 21, and Abigail, 16, have been left heartbroken by their father's death.
She said: 'Abigail was just 13 when he died. She was a proper daddy's girl.
'She still bursts out crying now because she misses him so much.'
After her husband's death, Mrs Bonehill wrote to the hospital to ask whether any changes would be made to its policy regarding DVT.
Mrs Bonehill says she has never received a response to her question, although the trust insists it did contact the family.
Phil Morley, chief executive for Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, said: 'I know my predecessor wrote to Mrs Bonehill and I would reiterate this apology and our sincere condolences.
'Since this case occurred in 2008 the trust has implemented the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (Nice) recommendations across the organisation and monitors that all in-patients have undergone an assessment as part of the admission process.
'A full education programme is being launched across the organisation to ensure all clinical staff are fully aware of the Nice guidance and to ensure we are able to respond rapidly to introduce new treatments and practice.'
Nick Gray, of the Hull branch of Williamsons Solicitors, which dealt with Mrs Bonehill's case, said: 'This is a good settlement. However, Mrs Bonehill is relatively young.
'If you think of it in terms of what Mr Bonehill would have brought into the family in earnings and the pension he would have received, the settlement is about £10,000 a year.'