Latest news with #JeanDye
New York Post
3 days ago
- Health
- New York Post
77-year-old dies during heart surgery after hospital loses power for 10 minutes: report
A 77-year-old British woman died during heart surgery when the hospital lost power for 10 minutes — and even the backup generator failed during the procedure. Jean Dye was undergoing a procedure for cardiac disease at Scunthorpe General Hospital in Scunthorpe, England, on Sept. 7, 2024, when the outage occurred in the middle of the surgery, the BBC reported this week, citing results from a newly released coroner's inquest. Scunthorpe General Hospital lost power during Jean Dye's heart surgery on Sept. 7, 2024. Google Maps Doctors were about to place cardiac stents in Dye's arteries when the loss of power left surgeons with 'limited opportunity to provide the necessary remedial treatment,' the inquest stated. The Emergency Power Off circuit was activated during the blackout, which overrode the back-up electrical supply, the report found. Surgeons were left in the dark as to the cause of the outage and were forced to wait for an engineer to reset the circuit during the critical operating juncture, according to the report. After 10 long minutes in the dark operating room, Dye died as a result of an 'iatrogenic dissection,' which is a tear involving an artery that occurs during a medical procedure, a coroner's report concluded. 'The delay whilst power was restored was a critical factor in this death,' the coroner said according to the BBC. No cause of the power outage has been identified, according to the report. 'Had staff been aware of the exact cause of the loss of power on this occasion and had they had the opportunity to rest the circuit without the need to await the arrival of an engineer, who in turn had to attend a separate plant room, the downtime would likely have been significantly reduced,' senior coroner Paul Smith said in comment to the outlet.
The Independent
4 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Woman died after 10-minute power cut during heart surgery
A woman died during an operation after an unexpected power outage at Scunthorpe General Hospital meant doctors were unable to complete critical heart surgery until power was restored. Jean Dye, 77, was undergoing a procedure to treat heart disease on 7 September 2020, when a "sudden and unexpected" loss of electricity to the treatment room meant surgeons were unable to use vital equipment, the coroner's report states. The power loss came as the surgeons were aiming to repair a tear in an artery caused during the operation, something the coroner recognised as "a rare but recognised complication of the procedure". The outage, which lasted for 10 minutes, meant the surgical team could not use real-time x-rays which were required to insert the stents (mesh tubes which are inserted into blood vessels to hold them open). Once an engineer arrived and restored the power, the stenting was then completed. However, the report, by Paul Smith, senior coroner for Greater Lincolnshire, states that "Mrs Dye failed to recover and her death was confirmed." "On balance of probabilities, Mrs Dye would have survived but for the loss of electrical power," Mr Smith said. "No clear cause of that loss of power was identified," he said, adding that "a fault within the circuitry was suspected but not established to the required standard". The report also warns that the investigation revealed electrical systems in the hospital may still be cause for concern. "In my opinion there is a risk that future deaths could occur unless action is taken," Mr Smith said. "All staff at the scene were unaware of the cause of the loss of power, never having experienced such a situation previously, and an engineer was summoned to attend to reinstate the power, which he did." Despite this, the report found evidence for similar such outages nationally. "It is plainly something which can, and does, occur." "Had staff been aware of the exact cause of the loss of power on this occasion and had they had the opportunity to reset the circuit without the need to await the arrival of an engineer, who in turn had to attend a separate plant room, the downtime would likely have been significantly reduced." Mr Smith added: "There may well be future cases within which such fine margins are time critical." The report states that NHS England has a duty to respond to the issues raised in the report by 28 August 2025.
