Lara’s Kylie Louise Dolan sues Barwon Health over mother’s death

A Lara resident is suing Barwon Health after her mum passed away due to post-operative complications she says could have been prevented.

Kylie Dolan's mum went in for an elective surgery and died in hospital. Picture: Alison Wynd

A Lara resident has launched legal action against Barwon Health after she lost her mum to post-operative complications she says could have been prevented.

Kylie Louise Dolan never got to say goodbye to her mother, Cherilyn Kerrins.

“She walked into the hospital with me like my mum, happy and joking,” Ms Dolan said.

“She never came out.”

Ms Kerrins, 71, died on September 23 2018, three days after undergoing elective surgery to remove plaque from her blocked arteries.

The coroner’s findings state Ms Kerrins was transferred to the intensive care unit just hours after her initial operation, where staff and the junior ICU doctor noted her legs appeared discoloured and normal pulses could not be felt.

Ms Dolan said staff initially failed to inform her that her mother was in ICU and that she only found out when she called to check on her mum’s condition.

“The ICU unit seemed very concerned,” she said.

Ms Dolan said they had they’d been calling the surgeon for advice and were told to do medical massages on her legs.

“But she had no pulses in her legs, how would that help?,” she said.

Ms Dolan said her mum was assessed the next morning and put on an elective list for afternoon surgery.

“Now, I understand that surgery is meant to be done within four to six hours,” Ms Dolan said.

Ms Dolan said her mother finally had surgery 18 hours after she was first admitted to ICU.

She said she believed this wait caused the “nightmare” that followed.

By the second surgery toxins had already flooded her mother’s system and her organs were shutting down.

Ms Kerrins died two days later.

Kylie Louise Dolan and her mum, Cherilyn Kerrins.

Ms Dolan said the devastating loss left her in shock, and organising two funerals – her mother’s, and her brother’s - who passed away from cancer just eight weeks later.

Following the coroner’s report, Ms Dolan is taking legal action.

“I knew it wasn’t right, but you have faith in the medical system,” she said.

Ms Dolan said she didn’t know how to speak up, or how to push for the doctor to come and assess her mum.

“Speak up if things don’t look right to you,” she said.

Barwon Health chief medical officer Dr Ajay Verma, said he couldn’t comment as the matter was before the courts.

“We would like to express our sincere condolences to the family for their loss,” Dr Verma said.

Morris Blackburn lawyer Gabrielle Feery said the coronial findings showed the delay in reassessment and surgeries clearly reduced Ms Kerrins' chances of survival.

“Unacceptable delays in treatment like this place patient safety at risk,” she said.

“There’s no excuse for the delays in treating what was an emergency situation.”

Originally published as Lara’s Kylie Louise Dolan sues Barwon Health over mother’s death