Feeding tubes not to blame for journalist's death, doctors tell inquest

Doctors have maintained that medical equipment was not to blame for the death of a Bexhill journalist, an inquest heard this week.

At the hearing at Hove Crown Court Dr Timothy Doyle, consultant interventional radiologist at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton, said there was no evidence that the feeding tubes fitted to 58-year-old Barbara Dalzell, of Marina, were faulty.

He said Miss Dalzell was complaining of 'abdominal pain' and vomiting but said the tubes were always tested before being used on patients.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The inquest heard that Miss Dalzell and 76-year-old Latimer Giggins, who lived in Hove, both died within weeks of each other after feeding tubes were inserted during treatment at the Brighton hospital.

Miss Dalzell was the first female chief sub-editor of a national daily newspaper and had cancer in one of her tonsils.

Mr Giggins needed a feeding tube because he was being treated for cancer of the lower jaw and had undergone a 13-hour operation beforehand.

Both died from peritonitis, inflammation of the abdominal wall, within two weeks of having the feeding tubes inserted.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A post-mortem examination showed Miss Dalzell and Mr Giggins died because the tubes were loose and food and fluid had leaked into their abdominal cavities.

Miss Dalzell, who worked for The Guardian and the Financial Times, died on May 27 last year.

Mr Giggins passed away on April 17.

Coroner Veronica Hamilton-Deeley began hearing joint inquests on Monday because of the similar circumstances surrounding their deaths.

An inquest jury was told at the start of the five-day hearing that a post-mortem examination by pathologist Dr David Wright revealed that both deaths resulted from peritonitis after the feeding tubes were inserted.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Remco van de Meel, global products manager for Cook Medical, the firm that makes the feeding tubes, said there was no fault with the equipment.

He said: "There is no reason for me to believe that the hospital could have used the equipment in such a way as to lead to this adverse situation."