KEY POINTS:
"You didn't help him, and my son died in agony!"
The tearful accusation from a grieving mother was hurled across the small room at managers from Christchurch Hospital, who sat in silence.
The managers appeared after a report into the death of Dean Carroll, 25, who succumbed to illness a day after he went to the hospital for help looking like "Frankenstein" and was sent away with the diagnosis of simple back pain.
But yesterday's gathering quickly became an emotional platform for members of Mr Carroll's family and friends to vent their anger and frustration at what they saw as a lack of accountability. An external report released yesterday into Mr Carroll's death in April found no negligence by hospital staff but said overcrowding at the hospital's emergency department meant he did not get the treatment he should have.
The report said: "What Dean deserved was more timely care, more expert care and a period of observation which may have allowed the true nature of his serious illness to become apparent."
Mr Carroll's mother, Sheree Carroll, told the managers there had to be negligence.
"I don't think anyone took Dean seriously. They just thought he was a wimp. He just didn't get any help. We went round and round in circles trying to get some help and no one gave us any help.
"Even if he was going to die, he could have stayed in [hospital] that night and been pain-free."
Mr Carroll's partner, Victoria Milne, said no blood or urine tests were done to try to find out what was wrong with him.
"There were enough signs to warrant more investigation."
Professor Mike Ardagh, from the Christchurch Hospital emergency department, said Mr Carroll's bacterial infection was difficult to diagnose.
He did not have the signs and symptoms that could be expected.
But he conceded: "We wish we had made different decisions."
A lot of improvements were needed at the emergency department and in recent years "the pace of progress has been too slow".
Christchurch Hospital general manager Mark Leggett said if Mr Carroll's family were not satisfied with the findings of the external report there were still inquiries to be done by the Health and Disability Commissioner and the coroner.
"By all accounts, we could have done better. If you're asking 'should people lose their jobs?' that's not been answered clearly yet," Mr Leggett said.
Mr Carroll's family had also complained about rudeness from nurses they dealt with and in-house "communication training" is planned in response.
