Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

3. Miss I complains that in December 2021 the Trust removed the diagnosis saying her brain injury was caused by an assault in 2009. The diagnosis was made 12 years before.

4. She also complains about how the Trust handled her complaint and says its responses were not good enough and she had to keep going back to it to get answers to her questions.

5. She says she lost faith in the Trust and is not able to get any more treatment for her symptoms. She says she has not agreed to the offer of a second opinion because she does not feel another Trust would take her seriously.

6. She says because her diagnosis was removed her mental health has been affected and she has experienced confusion, loss, self-doubt, grief, guilt and stress. She says she has become withdrawn from her family and friends and lost confidence. She feels she is no longer able to ask for help and support because the Trust says her symptoms are not because of the assault.

7. She says the Trust caused her more distress because of how it handled her complaint and the responses it gave.

8. Miss I would like financial compensation.

9. Miss I was assaulted in 2009 and suffered a head injury.

10. Miss I saw different medical professionals from 2009 to 2021 who said the symptoms she was experiencing were because of the assault.

11. In 2021 she started to experience new symptoms and was assessed, but the doctor said the new symptoms could not be explained medically.

12. The Trust offered her a multi-disciplinary team meeting (an MDT is where different specialists discuss treatment and support) and this was held in December 2021.

13. The MDT discussed Miss I’s new symptoms and reviewed her notes and scans from 2009 to the present time.

14. The MDT said no injuries were caused to Miss I’s brain in 2009 and the results shown on the scans dated back further than 2009.

15. The Trust advised Miss I she could get a second opinion from another hospital.

16. Miss I complained to the Trust in April 2022 and the Trust gave a final response in September. She brought her complaint to us in December.

18. The Health Service Commissioners Act 1993 is the law that gives us powers to investigate. It says we cannot investigate a complaint where a person has the option to take legal action, unless we consider this is unreasonable in the circumstances.

19. We discussed this with Miss I to understand her circumstances and the outcomes she wants. We do not consider whether legal action would succeed, but whether it would be a reasonable option to look in to.

20. Miss I could make a clinical negligence claim to try to get the financial compensation she wants. We asked Miss I if there was anything stopping her from looking into this. Miss I said she could not afford it and she does not feel she is physically or mentally well enough to go through the court process.

21. We explained to Miss I there are ‘no win no fee’ solicitors and that solicitors are there to support and guide her through the process and represent her. This makes the process easier. We told her she could get support from an advocate or someone could bring the complaint to a solicitor on her behalf.

22. Miss I has been able to complain to the Trust and us. She had support from a friend to help write parts of her complaint, so there is support available to her. We do not feel the reasons Miss I has given would stop her from exploring legal action.

23. While we do not underestimate the impact the change of diagnosis had on Miss I, having considered the evidence we have decided legal action would be the best route for her to take.

24. The courts can independently review the complaint and decide if there has been clinical negligence. We hope this information helps Miss I to progress her complaint and achieve the outcome she wants.

1. The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman has carefully considered Miss I’s complaint about Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (the Trust). We are very sorry to hear about the ongoing impact the complaint issues had on Miss I.

2. We looked at what Miss I told us and based on the outcome she is looking for, we consider she should try to resolve this by taking legal action.