At the start of last summer, 13-year-old Martha was full of life, dreaming of becoming an author, engineer or film director. By the end of the summer, she was dead after catastrophic errors at a leading UK hospital.
Her mother, a fierce supporter of the NHS, stresses that the tragedy was not due to cuts or overstretched staff, but a breach of duty of care. She admits that had she acted differently, her daughter might still be alive.
The family was on holiday in Snowdonia when Martha fell off her bike, landing on her handlebars. A minor injuries unit nurse, after consulting a doctor by phone, diagnosed internal bruising and prescribed paracetamol. But by 2am, Martha was vomiting and in severe pain.
Her father pushed her in a wheelbarrow to the car, and they drove to Bronglais hospital in Aberystwyth. The hospital has since admitted a catastrophic error, but the mother says blind faith in doctors cost her daughter's life.
She now wants everyone to know what she learned too late: that questioning medical decisions can save lives. 'No matter how many times I'm told it was the doctors' job, I know that had I acted differently, she'd still be living.'
