A grandmother who took her own life had been convinced she had terminal cancer.
Joanna Stone, who lived with her husband in Saxmundham, was discovered by members of the public in the water at Dunwich beach, shortly before midnight on May 22 last year.
An inquest into Mrs Stone’s death was told on Thursday that she had told a doctor two days before she died: “I know I’ve got end stage colorectal cancer. I know I’m dying, I know there’s nothing you can do for me.”
Suffolk Coroners’ Court heard that 71-year-old Mrs Stone had been experiencing abdominal pain and distension for several weeks.
Following a GP referral, Mrs Stone met with Dr Rebecca Hymas, who was then a general surgery registrar at Ipswich Hospital, where she relayed her cancer fears.
When Mrs Stone’s CT results arrived, Dr Hymas did not see evidence of colorectal cancer. Instead, the results suggested that Mrs Stone was suffering from diverticular disease.
Dr Hymas said this condition is “wear and tear” of the large bowel and around 70% of 70-year-olds live with the disease.
It is treatable with antibiotics.
She said she tried to slowly explain these results to Mrs Stone and she advised her to remain in hospital to receive antibiotics and painkillers.
However, Mrs Stone was adamant that she wanted to go home. It was agreed that she would have ‘open access’ to the ward for the following three days.
The court heard that there was some confusion as to what this meant.
Mrs Stone’s husband, William Stone, said that his wife thought this would allow her to be admitted to The Surgical Assessment unit at a later date.
Dr Hymas said open access allowed Mrs Stone to go straight to the unit’s waiting room without having to go through A&E or a GP, but did not guarantee her a bed if none were available, as was the case.
On May 21, Mr and Mrs Stone went back to the unit. Mrs Stone was in the waiting room for five hours before discharging herself. In that time, she was not seen by any clinician, and no notes document that she was there.
“The lack of care and interest was palpable,” said Mr Stone.
Dr Hymas said that she had previously raised concerns about the inefficiency of the triage system at the unit. She said that she was not surprised Mrs Stone had not been seen, nor received any pain relief.
Stephen Chandler, matron for general surgery and gastroenterology at the hospital, told the court that improvements have been made since Mrs Stone’s death.
Mr Stone recalled being woken by police in the early hours of May 23. It was then that he realised what had happened and discovered a note from his wife.
A post-mortem found that Mrs Stone had drowned.
Mr Taheri concluded that Mrs Stone had died by suicide.
He did not find the “suboptimal” treatment she had received at Ipswich Hospital to be causative in her death, however he acknowledged that it was a distressing experience.
Mr Taheri has asked Ipswich Hospital to provide evidence to the court that improvements have been made in terms of ensuring patients understand what is meant by open access, and that triaging at the surgical assessment unit is being effectively carried out.
He ended proceedings by offering his own sincere condolences to Mrs Stone’s family.
Whatever you are going through, you don’t have to face it alone. Call Samaritans for free on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or visit www.samaritans.org for more information.
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