A coroner has made a finding of death by medical misadventure in the case of a woman who died after being allegedly treated for the wrong condition.
Marie O’Mahony (65) was admitted to St Vincent’s hospital at about 4am on August 24th, 2020, after coughing up significant amounts of blood at her home in Rathfarnham.
Despite being identified at triage stage as somebody who should be seen within two hours, she was not seen until 9am, said a doctor at the hospital. A “differential diagnosis” was made indicating that she might be suffering from a pulmonary embolism, the inquest heard. She was given blood thinners.
While undergoing a CAT scan that evening she suffered a large bleed on the lungs, followed by a heart attack. She never recovered consciousness and died early on August 27th.
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After Dublin District Coroner Dr Myra Cullinane delivered her verdict, Ms O’Mahony’s husband Michael O’Mahony asked if he could speak about his wife, whose death and funeral took place during Covid restrictions.
Mr O’Mahony told the court he met his wife at a Brendan Bowyer concert in 1982 and they were married four years later. “Marie was a wonderful, loving wife, a caring supportive mother to David and Aidan and a fantastic friend to many people.”
He described his wife as “a lady” who was very easy to please and who “really appreciated all of the little things that someone would do for her”.
Earlier he gave evidence that he was woken on the morning of August 24th, at 1.30am by his wife’s coughing. Marie went to the bathroom and was on her knees coughing significant amounts of blood into the toilet bowl. The couple travelled to the Emergency Department of St Vincent’s hospital.
The Court was told Ms O’Mahony had been treated over a long period for sarcoidosis, an inflammation of cells that caused them to form red, swollen lumps, particularly in the lungs. The sarcoidosis was visible on Ms O’Mahony’s legs.
Evidence was given by Dr Nichola Boyle of St Vincent’s hospital that an initial assessment of Ms O’Mahony’s condition, influenced in part by the sarcoidosis, included a risk of pulmonary embolism.
Dr Boyle said guidelines for medical care and hospital protocols for treating embolisms suggested therapeutic treatment should be immediate and include blood thinners. Ms O’Mahony was treated with blood thinners for the suspected embolism and a scan was taken of her lungs.
Doireann O’Mahony, instructed by David O’Malley of Callan Tansey Solicitors, representing the O’Mahony family (no relation), said it was unfortunate that the very procedure that would have shown what was wrong, the scan, was being undertaken when the patient suffered a large bleed from the lungs. She asked the doctor: “When did you find out the diagnosis was wrong?”
Dr Boyle said this was after Ms Boyle suffered the cardiac arrest.
Dr Cullinane said the verdict of “medical misadventure” made no “finding of fault”. It simply meant an “intended action” took place and “the outcome of the action was not intended.”
