A woman with severe anorexia died two days after she was denied hospital treatment, an inquest heard. Madeline Wallace, 18, was given an urgent referral by an out-of-hours GP but it was rejected because 'there were not enough beds'.
Miss Wallace died at Peterborough City Hospital on 9 January, 2018 due to complications from sepsis. The inquest at Huntingdon Law Courts heard that she was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa in October 2016 and had 'rapidly lost weight' during her first term as a medical student at Edinburgh University in 2017.
Her mother, Christine Reid, said there had been 'gaps' in her care, including a failure to recognise 'the dire urgency of the situation' by medics at the Cullen Centre, in Edinburgh. Miss Wallace returned home to be treated by Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Foundation Trust (CPFT) in December 2017 to focus on her recovery.
She became seriously unwell with chest pains and was rushed to hospital in Peterborough on 4 January. She felt 'agitated' and worried she would miss meals, and discharged herself. On 7 January her mother phoned 111 and a nurse referred her to an out of hours GP who made an urgent referral for hospital treatment, but it was denied and she was sent home with antibiotics.
On 8 January, Miss Wallace was again rushed to hospital and was diagnosed with pneumonia which had developed into sepsis. The following day, doctors attempted a procedure to save her life but she died in theatre.
