A Fife man choked to death on a throat tumour just 45 minutes after his daughter warned nurses he was struggling to swallow or breathe, she has claimed.
Gillian Collins, 46, said she told nurses her father Thomas Sullivan, 68, was choking in his bed at the Cameron Hospital near Windygates.
She said he had his hands clamped around his throat in panic and his eyes were “bulging from his head”.
She claimed nurses stood back and told her not to worry as he was simply “having a panic attack”.
However, just minutes after she went home with her 14-year-old son she received word her father had taken a turn and minutes later he died.
A post-mortem revealed the cause of death was “choking on a tumour mass”.
According to the report, he had a 4cm x 4cm tumour on his larynx which had not been diagnosed.
Mrs Collins has now been left baffled after she received a letter this week from NHS Fife claiming Mr Sullivan actually choked on a “mucus plug”.
Associate medical director Dr Gordon Birnie wrote: “There is no doubt that your father choked on the mass and staff should have recognised he was choking and should have attempted to suction the back of the larynx.”
Mrs Collins, of Methil, said she was told it was her word against that of staff.
She added: “I had just been in with my son. When I was in there he was choking. I told the nurses, and my son was panicking.
“The nurse said ‘It’s OK he’s having a panic attack’.
“But I’d just left when I got a call to say he’d taken a turn. Then he died. If the hospital had investigated why he couldn’t swallow they would have found he had a throat tumour.
“Also, for the nurse not to put in her notes that he was choking is inexcusable.
“I am very upset to receive a letter from the hospital saying that they are not responsible for his death.”
Professor Scott McLean, NHS Fife interim director of acute services, said: “Firstly, I would like to extend my deepest sympathies to Ms Collins and her family over their loss. NHS Fife strives to provide the highest possible standards of care to all of our patients and where concerns are raised we take them seriously and investigate them thoroughly.
“In line with this approach, and whilst we cannot comment on the detail of individual cases, we can confirm that we engaged extensively with Ms Collins, including facilitating a meeting with our associate medical director Dr Gordon Birnie.
“Whilst we are disappointed that Ms Collins has expressed dissatisfaction with our conclusions, I can assure her that she would have the full cooperation of the health board should she wish to escalate her concerns any further.”