Family anguish as mum dies two weeks after being given a high paracetamol dose in hospital (Picture: SWNS)
The family of a woman who died after being given a high dose of paracetamol in hospital have said they feel they are being ‘gaslighted’ by the justice system.
The Crown Prosecution Service have ruled no manslaughter charges should be brought over the death of Laura Higginson.
The 30-year-old was admitted to a Cheshire hospital in 2017 weighing just five-and-a-half stone after suffering from sickness and pneumonia, but was accidentally administered a dose of painkillers meant for a much heavier person.
Two weeks later, Laura passed away as a result of multi-organ failure, sepsis and Gitleman’s syndrome, a rare genetic condition of the kidneys.
The hospital previously admitted administering too much of the medication but denied it has caused or contributed to her death, according to reports.
However, Antony says he only found out about the paracetamol overdose more than a year later and has pushed for a prosecution ever since, alleging a cover-up.
But after ‘having carefully considered all the available evidence’, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has confirmed it will not be pursuing the case
Antony said: ‘We feel that we have been gaslighted. Justice is not fair, it’s unaffordable, unachievable, unaccountable and corrupt.’
Laura Higginson died of multiple organ failure and sepsis in 2017 but her family claim she was accidentally overdosed by hospital staff (Picture: SWNS)
He said: ‘What we have is a merry-go-round of blame and in the middle is us, the bereaved.
‘I’m missing my wife, Laura’s parents are missing their daughter, and my children are missing their mum all because these organisations are pointing the finger at each other.
‘They rendered her life insignificant when she mattered the world to me, her mum and dad, and her children.
‘We are broken, despairing – we are angry beyond compare.’
Laura, from Widnes, Merseyside, weighed just 36kg when she was admitted to hospital on April 5, 2017.
Due to her weight, she should only have been given around 500mg doses of paracetamol, it is claimed.
However, she was given doses of a gram at a time over two days, documents show.
This was not recorded as an incident at the time and the hospital only began to investigate over a year later when Laura’s family intervened, Antony alleges.
He claims Laura’s family were only made aware of the overdose after receiving a copy of the post-mortem report from her GP months after her death.
Husband Anthony claims he is being ‘gaslit’ by the Crown Prosecution Service following their decision not to press manslughter charges and has vowed to seek justice (Picture: SWNS)
Antony claimed: ‘We now fall into the coronial inquest but we have zero confidence in HM Coroner given the previous two coroners’ handling of Laura’s case.
‘The CPS not charging doesn’t surprise me – if they charged twelve people with manslaughter, no one would ever walk in a hospital again.
‘The doctors who prescribed her medicine did not seek medical advice from pharmacists beforehand and blindly prescribed her the wrong dosage.
‘If they hadn’t done that, she would be alive now.’
A spokesperson for the CPS said: ‘Our thoughts remain with the family of Laura Higginson.
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‘Having carefully considered all the available evidence in the case, we concluded that no charges could be brought against the hospital trust.
‘A further review by an independent lawyer, brought under the Victims’ Right to Review Scheme, has upheld this decision.
‘We understand this is not the outcome the family were hoping for and have written to explain our decision in detail.’
Whiston Hospital said: ‘The Trust offers its sincere condolences to the family of the late Mrs Higginson.
‘From the outset, the Trust cooperated fully with the investigation and subsequent review of the case.’
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The woman’s family claim they are being ‘gaslit’ by the CPS after they decided not to pursue manslaughter charges.