Overview
The complainant (Mrs C) said that the death of her husband (Mr C) could have been avoided if staff of Tayside NHS Board (the Board) had done more to establish the extent of his condition. Mrs C felt that the diagnostic process was unnecessarily delayed and that, had Mr C's liver cancer been diagnosed sooner, it may have been treatable.
Specific complaint and conclusion
The complaint which has been investigated is that the Board took unnecessarily long to diagnose and treat Mr C's condition (not upheld).
Redress and recommendation
The Ombudsman recommends that the Board consider ways to minimise any delays to cases being discussed by the upper gastrointestinal multi-disciplinary team.
The Board have accepted the recommendation and will act on it accordingly.