Hong Kong’s North District Hospital to probe patient death after nurse forgets medication
Drugs were placed in a drawer and not handed to 64-year-old patient before he was discharged. He died two weeks later
Hong Kong’s North District Hospital will set up an expert panel to probe the death of a 64-year-old diabetic with pancreatic cancer and a heart condition who died in May after a nurse forgot to hand over his medicine.
The hospital in Sheung Shui on Saturday said the male patient had been admitted to its emergency ward on April 23 for abdominal pain, vomiting and weakness in the lower limbs. He was diagnosed with diabetes and cardiovascular disease and the next day confirmed to also have pancreatic cancer, which had spread to the liver.
After receiving treatment under observation, he was discharged on May 4 with medicine for diabetes, his heart condition and high blood pressure.
“While the patient was waiting to be discharged, the ward nurse put the drugs in a drawer ... and did not hand them to the patient before he left,” a hospital spokesman said.
The man was let go that afternoon without the medication, and staff did not realise their mistake for two weeks.
