Sussex nursery worker died after Covid delayed liver surgery

A nursery worker died after developing Covid-19 while waiting for a liver transplant, an inquest heard.

Katie Horne, 21, visited the Princess Royal Hospital in West Sussex with jaundice, dark urine, tiredness and cramps in March 2020.

Ms Horne, from Burgess Hill, had a severe liver condition but a transplant was delayed when she got Covid-19.

Coroner Andrew Harris said the effect of the pandemic on hospitals led to her death.

But he concluded that she died from natural causes.

Ms Horne had acute autoimmune hepatitis, which led to the liver failure.

Mr Harris said there was "no evidence" the hospital provided inappropriate care to Ms Horne, but raised concerns about delays in receiving results and involving a gastroenterologist in her care.

Blood test results determining what type of hepatitis Ms Horne had were delayed due to a "backlog" at the lab as a result of the pandemic, the inquest heard.

Her consultant, Tatyana Viner, said she was too "busy" to chase the results.

It also took two weeks for Ms Horne to meet with a gastroenterologist, Dr Nick Parnell, in mid-March.

The inquest heard that if Dr Parnell was involved from the start, Ms Horne could have started treatment 10 days earlier.

Ms Horne was then transferred to King's College Hospital, London, and placed under the care of Dr Varuna Aluvihare.

But she tested positive for Covid-19 after four days, making her ineligible for a transplant.

She was moved to intensive care after "deteriorating quickly" and died on 11 April.

Dr Parnell and Dr Aluvihare agreed that if she had received treatment sooner it would have had a "better outcome", but were unable to say if she would have survived.

Mr Harris told the inquest he would provide a prevention of future deaths report as the Princess Royal had not undertaken an internal investigation and "this is not very reassuring for the family".

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