Hospital error woman dies

The hospital says insulin overdose was not to blame for death

A 55-year-old former nurse wrongly given an insulin overdose while recovering from a life-saving liver transplant has died.

But hospital bosses say the insulin blunder did not cause her death.

Diabetic Teresita Cruz, died on Wednesday morning at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, in Birmingham.

Ms Cruz, from Leicester, had a liver transplant at the beginning of March, but lapsed into a coma while undergoing treatment.

Her death was not related to a clinical incident which occurred during her illness for which a separate investigation was launched.

A spokeswoman for University Hospital Birmingham NHS Trust

A spokeswoman for Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital said it had apologised to Ms Cruz's family for the blunder, but said it was not connected to her death.

"University Hospital Birmingham NHS Trust would like to offer its sincere condolences to the family of Terisita Cruz who died this morning.

"Terisita died from a blocked artery which reduced blood flow to the transplant liver which resulted in its failure.

"This is a recognised complication of liver transplantation.

"Her death was not related to a clinical incident which occurred during her illness for which a separate investigation was launched, the details of which are currently being discussed with the family."

Insulin overdose

Earlier last month the hospital admitted that Ms Cruz had been given more insulin than necessary and an inquiry was launched.

The Birmingham case follows a series of blunders at hospitals around the country.

In February 18-year-old Wayne Jowett died at a Nottingham hospital after a cancer drug was injected into his spine instead of a vein

He was killed by a slow, creeping paralysis that eventually stopped his heart.

Donna Horn died eight years after a hospital mistake

Managers at Queen's Medical Centre launched an inquiry into the blunder and two junior doctors were suspended.

His death came just 24 hours after an inquest into the death of a female patient who took eight years to die, after being injected with vincristine in the spine.

Donna Horn, of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, was just 15 when the mistake occurred - she was left paralysed from the neck down.

The coroner at her case called for changes to syringe design to make another such tragedy impossible.