Woman, 49, with severe asthma died ‘in horrific conditions’ after waiting 39 HOURS on an ER chair

A disabled woman suffering from a severe asthma attack died after waiting 39 hours on a chair in a busy emergency room for a hospital bed. 13244365

Marina Young, 46, was taken to Royal Preston Hospital in Lancashire after suffering from shortness of breath and a headache.

Doctors quickly realized she needed to be admitted, but the hospital was full, with more than 50 people waiting in the emergency room for a bed.

The staff underestimated the seriousness of her condition and did not give her any special medications or refer her to intensive care or the respiratory unit.

Marina spent two nights in a chair and was found collapsed the second morning around 10am, still fully clothed and soaked in her own urine.

She went into cardiac arrest and the staff tried to resuscitate her.

But when her sister, 47-year-old Michelle Young, arrived a short time later to drop off some belongings, she received the devastating news that Marina had died.

An internal investigation by the hospital found that Ms Young, who had spina bifida, would not have suffered a cardiac arrest if she had been treated more quickly and referred to experienced doctors earlier.

Michelle, a retired nurse from a hospital ward, told MailOnline: ‘Marina died in appalling circumstances.

‘It’s disgusting to think that my sister could be treated with such a lack of compassion by the NHS when it should care for all people, regardless of their physical limitations.’

Marina was diagnosed at birth with spina bifida, which can cause lifelong mobility problems. She was the first baby in the UK to have a bladder transplant.

Despite her problems, she was able to live independently, walk short distances and live close to her family.

On the evening of June 20, 2022, Michelle Marina drove to the Royal Preston because she was wheezing and suspected she was having an asthma attack.

When they arrived at 7.25pm, Michelle explained her sister’s medical history to the nurses and although she was not allowed to stay due to Covid-19 restrictions, she was in regular contact via text messages. The messages showed her increasing distress, Michelle said.

Marina, who was afraid of hospitals because of her childhood, wrote: ‘Afraid when I sit in a chair at night with a throbbing headache’.

The investigation revealed that Marina was seen by a doctor on June 20 at around 9:00 p.m. and just before 11:00 p.m., after which it was decided to admit her to a ward.

But that night the Emergency Department was extremely busy: there were 109 people in the department and about half of them were waiting for a bed.

Although Marina was given antibiotics for a suspected infection, there was a delay in administering nebulisers (medications used to treat asthma) and repeated blood oxygen tests were not performed.

In addition, it took some time for her to be seen by a senior consultant and a referral to the hospital respiratory team the following day was not made.

Although further tests in the early morning of June 22 showed that there was no improvement in Marina’s condition and that she was suffering from “life-threatening asthma”, her care was never transferred to the hospital’s intensive care team.

At approximately 09.25 on 22 June, Marina, from Ribbleton, Lancashire, was examined by a junior doctor who noted that she was ‘speaking in short sentences but was visibly out of breath.’

At 9:44 a.m. she was seen by a nurse, but three minutes later she was found dead in her chair, having suffered cardiac arrest.

Doctors tried to resuscitate her, but she could not be saved.

Michelle said she hopes the inquest into Marina’s death, which takes place later this month, will shed more light on the way disabled people are treated by the NHS. She hopes lessons will be learned so other families don’t suffer as she did.

She added: ‘Losing Marina in such a terrible way has been devastating not just for me but also for our father George, who cared for Marina while he was undergoing cancer treatment and who has sadly since passed away. I believe our father’s death was caused by the stress of what happened to Marina.

‘As a family, we hope that this research will lead to change and that we will prevent someone else from having to go through what we did.’

Madeleine Langmead, a medical negligence lawyer at law firm JMW, who is representing Marina’s family at the inquest, said: ‘Marina was a much loved sister and daughter and her death has had a devastating impact on her family.

‘Nothing can bring Marina back, but it is vital that she is given a voice and that her care is scrutinised.

Marina was a vulnerable patient and her case could have far-reaching implications for patient safety.’

The company will also assess whether to file a legal claim for damages against the hospital.

A spokesman for Lancashire Teaching Hospitals, which runs the Royal Preston hospital, said: ‘The Trust would like to express its sincere condolences to the family and friends of Marina Young.

“We welcome the coroner’s independent investigation and remain open to any further information that emerges from the investigation.”

Long waiting times in the Emergency Department have been linked to high mortality and increased harm to patients, as their condition may deteriorate before they are admitted or given a bed in a ward.

According to the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM), 23,003 people died in 2022 after spending at least 12 hours in emergency departments waiting for care or to be admitted to a bed. That equates to about one person every 23 minutes.

Earlier this year, 39-year-old Inga Rublite died after she was found unconscious under a coat on the floor of a hospital emergency room, where she had been for eight hours.

Her name had been called three times by staff at the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham, but when she did not respond they assumed she had left and discharged her from the system. She had suffered a brain haemorrhage.