A dog walker who slipped and injured his ankle died just two weeks later - but his life could have been saved if he saw his GP face to face, a hearing heard.
Callum Jones, 27, had been walking his dog with friends at Loggerheads on October 3 last year when he slipped on a wooden footbridge and hurt his ankle. After being sent to hospital in North Wales, he was diagnosed with a fractured right ankle and given a protective boot and crutches, NorthWalesLive reports.
An inquest into his death was held in Ruthin where it was heard the 27-year-old suffered a blood clot two weeks later and died. But the inquest heard Mr Jones' clot may have been found had he had a face-to-face meeting with a doctor, rather than a telephone one. John Gittins, Senior Coroner for North Wales East and Central, branded the circumstances of the accident as "absurd".
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The hearing heard how on October 11, Mr Jones went back for an appointment at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd where the diagnosis was changed to badly sprained ligaments and tendons, but two days later he became breathless and had chest and shoulder pains. On October 15, he phoned for a telephone consultation at Shotton Lane surgery where he was diagnosed with "pleuritic pain" from pleurisy.
His GP, Dr Chris Murphy, told the hearing he was not aware Mr Jones was wearing an ankle boot. However, on October 17, he collapsed at home and was rushed to the Countess of Chester hospital, but sadly died the next day. Post-mortem results showed he died from a pulmonary embolism (blocked blood vessel) as a result of immobility.
At the inquest, Dr Murphy said although there are more face-to-face appointments, there is still a pre-eminently telephone triage service. When asked if he had seen the boot, would a different diagnosis have been given, the doctor agreed.
The communication between primary and secondary care was branded a "constant thorn in our side" after it was heard the discharge letter from hospital only arrived at the GP surgery a couple of weeks after the 27-year-old's death.
Coroner Mr Gittins said: " I am concerned when Dr Murphy says it's not unusual when it's some weeks after when we have the discharge letter. I will be asking the health board to report to me in three weeks to explain the length of time it takes currently for discharge letters to be sent out."
He added that if the time frame represents a risk to other patients he will make a prevention of future deaths report. Mr Jones' death was recorded as an accident.
The deputy retail manager at the Card Factory shop in Broughton had been described as a "gentle boy, kind and loving" by his mum Kim Jones as the hearing heard there had been an "outpouring of love and support."
After the hearing, Mrs Jones told North Wales Live: "He could have been saved if he had been seen (by his GP) in person."
