A coroner has ruled that Homerton Hospital in east London failed to treat William Hewes with the required urgency before he died of sepsis. The 22-year-old politics and history student died of meningococcal septicaemia on 21 January after delays in administering antibiotics and fluids.
William's mother, Dr Deborah Burns, a consultant paediatrician at the hospital, raised the alarm eight times, repeatedly asking medics to give lifesaving antibiotics in the first hour. However, antibiotics were not given until 1.25am due to a misunderstanding between a doctor and nurses. There was also a 90-minute delay in transferring him from A&E to intensive care.
Coroner Mary Hassell, who also presided over the inquest into Martha Mills' death in 2021, highlighted similarities between the cases. Martha's death led to the adoption of 'Martha's rule', giving families the right to a second opinion. Hassell said it was unclear whether earlier treatment would have saved William, but she would issue a prevention of future deaths report.
Dr Burns told the inquest she felt 'betrayed' by colleagues who ignored her warnings. She said: 'On the night I took William to hospital I knew he needed antibiotics as soon as possible but I witnessed a delay. In all, I raised the alarm eight times.' She added that the hospital closed its investigation without informing her, forcing her to investigate herself.
Homerton Healthcare NHS Trust admitted the mistakes were 'suboptimal' and said it would take onboard the coroner's findings. The trust has since implemented Martha's rule, allowing patients and families to request urgent reviews of treatment.
