PATIENTS in Jersey who are concerned about their care should have the right to a second opinion, a doctor has said, in the wake of calls in the UK for the introduction of ‘Martha’s Rule’ following the preventable death of a teenager.
Dr Chris Edmond, a medical director at WorkHealth Jersey who also works part-time in the Hospital’s Cardiology Department, said ‘as a doctor, a parent and a patient’ he would ‘100% support’ greater rights for patients.
Martha Mills died of sepsis in 2021 at the age of 13 at King’s College Hospital, after going into the hospital with an injury to her pancreas caused by falling off her bike.
When her health deteriorated, Martha’s parents raised concerns but these were dismissed by doctors. Later, an inquest heard that transferring Martha to intensive care would probably have saved her life, but that opportunities were missed.
The hospital has since apologised to the parents.
Following her case, calls are intensifying in the UK to give parents the statutory right to a second opinion if they are concerned about care. Martha’s mother, Merope Mills, will meet the UK health minister to discuss ‘Martha’s Rule’.
Jersey’s Health Minister, Deputy Karen Wilson, said her department was watching developments closely and that they were ‘continuously focusing effort to improve patient safety’.
She added that she had asked officers to look into whether similar measures ‘could improve patient safety here in Jersey’.
Dr Edmond said that while there were ways for patients at the Hospital to escalate concerns, hospitals were ‘very difficult places to navigate’.
‘They’re very complex,’ he added.
Dr Edmond said: ‘It has been shown to work where it has been used in the UK, where it has been used in America, where it has been used in Australia… I think it’s a fantastic idea to be honest.’
Dr Edmond added that Martha’s case was ‘a horrible, horrible story’ – but that introducing the rule could make a positive difference.
He explained: ‘There are people who lack the confidence to make the phone call. We need to empower everybody to be able to challenge when things aren’t going right.’
He added that while doctors try their best, ‘we are all fallible’.
