NURSE DIES AFTER OPERATION.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17782, 27 February 1926, Page 2

NURSE DIES AFTER OPERATION.

DOCTORS FREED FROM ALL BLAME. A verdict that death was due to asphyxia. resulting from the inhalation of blood and mucus into the air passages, together with oedema of the larnyx, during general anaesthesia, was returned by the Coroner (Mr H. Y. Widdowson) at the inquest this morning on Gladys Norah Sayers, aged twenty, a probationer nurse at the Christchurch Hospital, who died while undergoing an operation for quinsy on February 7.

Sergeant Roach conducted the case for the police. Dr A. B. Pearson, pathologist, submitted a report on his post-mortem examination.

In reply to the Coroner, Dr Pearson said that although he had had no. experience, he understood that it was usual to administer an anaesthetic for an operation for quinsy. The tonsils were septic. The thyrax gland was quite healthy. It was a pure accident. He had no fault to find with the gas used. He could not express any opinion as to the relative merits or demerits of gas and other anaesthetics. Dr E. L. Bennett, assistant superintendent of the Christchurch Hospital, said that deceased was a probationer nurse at the Christchurch Hospital. She was previously a healthy girl and had been at the Hospital for no longer than three months. He first knew that she had quinsy on February 3, when it was reported to him that she was sick. She appeared to have acute, tonsilitis or diphtheria. Next day it was discovered that it was not diphtheria. She was put under the usual treatment for tonsilitis and on the two following days her condition tended to get worse. He received a message on February 7 to lance the swelling. Nurse Sayers had great difficulty in speaking. She was agreeable to the swelling being lanced and accepted his suggestion that gas should be used, as the operation would be difficult to do and painful for her. Dr Minty administered the gas, he being the most experienced house surgeon. The gas used was the ordinary gas used by dentists and was quite harmless. The abscess was lanced. He turned the patient on her face, so that she would expel the blood and mucus. At that time she was not fully conscious. She attempted to expel the matter and he thought that she would come further out of the anassthetic. Instead of that, she was unable to breath out. Tt was obvious that there was an acute obstruction of some sort in the back of the throat or the larnyx. The only possible course was to get air through by some means and he took the speediest course and he did tracheomony, which unfortunately necessitated turning her on her back. During this time, she had not breathed at ajl. Immediately the opening was made in the trachea, she took an enormous breath and sucked in the blood. The witness took measures to restore her, but they failed and she died. He did not think that the anaesthetic made much difference. Gas was quite often given in such cases, but it depended on the ease or otherwise of getting to the patient’s throat and the state of the patient's feelings. In this case some form of anassthetic was absolutely essential. Dr W. E. Minty, house surgeon at the Christchurch Hospital, said that he administered the anaesthetic. Nurse Sayers took it well. After the operation, she coughed twice, expelling the blood from the mouth. Breathing then ceased. The witness corroborated Dr Bennett’s evidence as to the measures used to restore breathing. The Coroner said that Nurse Sayers had been a healthy girl. There had been nothing wrong with her heart that would have prevented an anaesthetic being given. The first question that arose was whether ft was necessary to give an anaesthetic at all. Dr Bennett had had a great deal of experience and he had stated that the quinsy was of such a character that he could not have operated without an anaesthetic. The trouble appeared to have occurred as the patient was emerging from the gas. She was still under the gas to a certain extent, and this had lessened the voluntary action to some extent. All methods had been tried, Dr Bennett going so far as to suck out the blood and mucus. It was necessary that the operation should have taken place. No blame was attached to Dr Bennett or Dr Minty.