By Staff Reporter

Last updated at 12:02, Wednesday, 04 November 2009

A Workington paramedic could lose her job after failing to give patients proper care.

A hearing before the Health Profession Council in London heard yesterday that Audrey Hodgson did not give basic care to a critically ill woman complaining of chest pains.

It is alleged that she forgot to give the woman oxygen or attach her to a heart monitor when called to her home in Whitehaven in September, 2006.

She also failed to alert accident and emergency staff at West Cumberland Hospital, the hearing was told.

Bosses later concluded that Hodgson had departed from standard practice on numerous occasions.

Less than four months after the Whitehaven incident, she failed to properly assess or monitor an elderly woman hit by a car, it was said.

Hodgson was demoted to an ambulance technician but continues to work at the Distington Ambulance Station near Workington.

Steve Cremin, a manager for the North West Ambulance Service, was asked to investigate the first incident after a critical incident form was referred to managers.

There was an incident at the West Cumberland Hospital following Ms Hodgson’s attendance to a patient with chest pain on September 16, he said. “It involved her failure, or alleged failure, to follow standard protocol.

“The staff nurse who put together the form said that when the patient arrived in the emergency department, the patient wasn’t monitored, had no oxygen and no IV [intravenous lines] were in place. Nor was she attached to an ECG [electrocardiogram] monitor.”

Mr Cremin said that after checking the ambulance control log his first concern was the amount of time Hodgson had spent at the patient’s home.

He said standard procedure was to try and leave within 10 minutes, but Hodgson had spent 18 minutes there.

Although the patient was critically ill, he said Hodgson chose to drive to the hospital leaving the patient with the ambulance technician.

He added: “No CTN drug had been administered when the ambulance got to hospital.

“This is the standard drug for patients with cardiac chest pain. No pain relief drugs had been given either and nor had she been given oxygen or been monitored.”

Mr Cremin said that while Hodgson cooperated during his investigation, further problems came to light. Her paperwork either fell short of what was required or was simply inaccurate, it was said.

John Harding, for the HPC, said that following the first investigation Hodgson continued to work as a paramedic until January 2007.

On January 11, an elderly woman was hit by a car when Hodgson was on duty.

This time she failed to adequately record the patient’s injuries, immobilise the patient, dress her head wound, or record standard observations, it was said.

Hodgson is charged with attending two incidents in which she failed to carry out routine paramedic procedures and observations.

She is also accused of impaired fitness to practise.

Hodgson, from Workington, neither admits or denies the charges. She did not attend the hearing, which resumes today.

First published at 11:37, Wednesday, 04 November 2009
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk