An inquest has heard that Mary Breen, an 85-year-old grandmother from Erdington, died after falling on the floor at Good Hope Hospital and subsequently contracting pneumonia.
The avid Birmingham City fan had been reluctant to seek medical help for a swollen foot but was persuaded by her family after three weeks of problems. Her son Mark told the court: "We are devastated because my mum didn't want to go into hospital, we talked her into going because we thought she would get the treatment she deserved."
Mrs Breen was being transferred from ward 14 at 6am to be monitored for discharge in October last year. She suffered a fractured femur but the injury went undetected for several days due to what the coroner called an "individual error" in scanning.
Assistant coroner Ian Dreelan noted there had been a "lack of professional curiosity" at the hospital as her pain went from zero to ten out of ten after the fall. However, he concluded the delay in finding the fracture did not contribute to her death.
After successful surgery at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Mrs Breen tested positive for Covid-19 and her condition deteriorated into sepsis. She died on November 2 from hospital-acquired pneumonia.
The family said they would be pursuing an official complaint with University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust over her treatment.
