Decision Report 201609475

Summary

Mrs C complained on behalf of her husband (Mr A) regarding treatment he received at Wishaw General Hospital after collapsing whilst he was out running. Mr A has a history of heart problems so, on admission to hospital, the symptoms he was experiencing, including ongoing headaches and worsening balance, were initially attributed to a suspected heart issue. However, as these symptoms continued to worsen in the following couple of days, a scan was arranged and a bleed to his brain was identified. Mrs C complained that, as a result of the delay in identifying the bleed, the board had failed to provide appropriate treatment for Mr A's head injury.

We took independent advice from a consultant in emergency medicine. The advice we received was that the treatment provided to Mr A was reasonable. The adviser considered that, based on Mr A's presenting symptoms, medical history and the information provided by the ambulance service, it was reasonable for the board to conclude that this was a cardiac event and that they had then offered appropriate treatment for this diagnosis. For this reason, we did not uphold Mrs C's complaint.