Double delays led to premature death

The treatment of a patient at Sollefteå hospital is now reported to the Inspectorate for Care and Care of Region Västernorrland as it is considered to have led to the patient's premature death.

The report concerns a patient who was admitted to the hospital with suspected pneumonia. When this was written, a referral was written for examination of the lungs and x-ray. This is because a tumor was suspected.

However, no further investigation was done. After about seven months, the patient visited the emergency room with severe shortness of breath. Then lung cancer was diagnosed. The prognosis was not bright, the patient was told that the care would only be symptomatic. The patient was not satisfied with that answer but wanted new tissue samples and x-rays to be done. This was also done and the analysis would be performed at another hospital. But the samples were not sent until the patient contacted the caregiver himself and requested the results.

With this, the analysis was delayed by about two months. Cytostatic treatment was initiated for three months but had to be discontinued due to complications. The patient then received palliative care in the home until his death.