The family of a man who died in Tallaght Hospital after becoming increasingly dehydrated, even as his wife begged nurses to give him water, believe the circumstances of his death have been “covered up”.
Peter Acton (61) from St John’s Grove in Clondalkin, Dublin, died on October 3rd, 2005, after he went into renal failure having been deprived of fluids over a five-hour period, despite being diagnosed with dehydration on admission. Mr Acton became so desperate for water he begged his wife Lydia to take him home because he “did not want to die” in hospital.
At the conclusion of an inquest into his death at Dublin Coroner’s Court on Friday, the hospital apologised to the family and admitted negligence in his treatment.
However, speaking outside the court, his son-in-law John Burke said the family believe the death was covered up.
“We have little doubt that they have covered up Peter’s death because of the nature of his death,” he said.
Mr Acton was admitted to hospital suffering from double pneumonia with vomiting and dehydration on October 1st. He was “nil-by-mouth” and on an intravenous drip.
However, when this failed the following afternoon, it was five hours before a doctor replaced it. As he became increasingly thirsty his wife repeatedly asked nurses to give him fluids, but was told they were waiting on a doctor to reinsert the drip. The inquest heard that the medical intern on call repeatedly failed to attend to Mr Acton when paged.
Nurse Aoife Folliard said resources were limited in the hospital because it was a weekend.
Mr Acton died the following morning as a result of multiorgan failure due to sepsis.
The hospital failed to report Mr Acton’s death to the coroner and no postmortem was carried out. The wrong cause of death was given on the death certificate. The Dublin coroner Dr Brian Farrell agreed to hold the inquest after a seven-year campaign by his family.
John Brennan, counsel for the family, petitioned Dr Farrell to return a verdict of unlawful death. However, Dr Farrell said Irish law would not allow for such a verdict but he noted there were several risk factors involved in Mr Acton’s death.
In the apology read out in court, the hospital accepted full responsibility for Mr Acton’s “untimely death”.