The family of a pensioner who died following a delay in diagnosing her septicaemia say they hope lessons will be learned following an admission that her death was avoidable

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust has paid a settlement to the family of Dorothy Moule, of Hartlebury, who died aged 73 in October 2014 days after having hernia surgery at Worcestershire Royal Hospital.

A report by the Health Service Ombudsman identified a number of failures in the care she received.

Her family instructed lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate her treatment. They obtained evidence that if Mrs Moule had the appropriate investigations carried out, this would have led to surgery that could have saved her life.

Her husband, Alfred Moule, 89, said: “I went in to see her the next day and she seemed very drowsy, but I assumed it was just whatever medication she was on. However, I was really concerned the day after when she was complaining of feeling sick.

“She gradually got paler and weaker – I knew something wasn’t right.”

On October 13, Mr Moule arrived at the hospital to be told Dorothy had a blockage and it was being investigated. In the early hours of the next day, he was called to go back in due to her condition deteriorating.

“Dorothy was in such a bad way, gasping for air and confused,” he said. “There was also an awful smell in her room. Eventually she was taken to intensive care and we were told she had septicaemia and needed surgery, although there was a low chance of survival.”

Dorothy suffered a cardiac arrest shortly before the surgery and just a few hours later she died.

Mr Moule said: “It remains incredibly hard to think about the final days of Dorothy’s life, particularly when the investigations into her care found so many things went wrong.

“She was taken from us far too soon and nothing will change what we have been through. Our family just wants to ensure that others don’t have to suffer and that the hospital learns.”

A spokesperson for the hospital trust said: “We would like to offer our sincerest condolences to Mrs Moule’s family. We’re pleased to see that a settlement has been reached that reflects the difficult situation that the family have been through.

“In line with our serious incidents policy, a full action plan was put in place following Mrs Moule’s death to ensure that lessons could be learned and shared within the trust.”