A woman from Woodbridge has says she was left traumatised following a procedure to fit a vaginal mesh at Ipswich Hospital.

A woman from Woodbridge has says she was left traumatised following a procedure to fit a vaginal mesh at Ipswich Hospital.

Jo Coghill, 54, received the procedure after being diagnosed with stress incontinence following the birth of her third child.

Ms Coghill, who is a legal assistant underwent the procedure almost five years ago.

“Following tests it was decided I should go ahead with the procedure for the mesh to be fitted, and I had an operation in July 2013,” said Ms Coghill.

For a year after the procedure Ms Coghill experienced serious pain and was told to give the surgery time to heal.

She continued to experience pain and had trouble visiting the toilet.

Ms Coghill then sought a second opinion and found a surgeon who was able to remove the mesh.

It was discovered that the mesh had started erode, causing her pain.

“The whole experience left me completely traumatised and I felt at times that if I sought help I would not be taken seriously,” said Ms Coghill.

“It was also difficult for me to go to a GP or hospital as going to such places left me really anxious after what I had been through.

“I have since found out information through the legal investigation that was never discussed with me.”

Having found out what had happened Ms Coghill turned to solicitors to investigate the care she had received at Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust.

A spokesperson for Ipswich Hospital said: “We appreciate it has been a difficult time for Ms Coghill and hope the settlement will help improve her quality of life.

“The Trust treats all claims as an opportunity to learn and to improve further the safety and quality of care of our patients.

“The claim was settled out of court on confidential terms without any admissions of liability.”

Ms Coghill has now undergone a second, successful surgery.

“While it was so pleasing to be able to have the issue corrected, all of these problems have caused me a huge amount of distress,” said Ms Coghill.

“I still get very emotional talking about everything I’ve been through.

“I am now determined to raise awareness of the complications of mesh implants in women contemplating this surgery.”

Vaginal mesh is just one of several medical devices that the government announced a review into today.

The hormone pregnancy test drug Primodos and epilepsy drug sodium valproate will also be looked at following patient concerns.

The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Jeremy Hunt said the response to the issues “has not always been good enough”.

Mr Hunt said the review will also consider the processes followed by the NHS and regulatory bodies after patients report their concerns - including how they communicate with patients.

He also announced plans to invest £1.1 million to develop a database for vaginal mesh which could help identify safety issues.

Speaking about all the drugs and devices concerned Mr Hunt said:“I want to see if we can establish a fairer and quicker way of resolving these concerns both now and in the future.”