Criminal charges possible over teenager's sepsis death at Kettering General Hospital, says CQC

The health watchdog has revealed it is considering a criminal prosecution over the death of a teenager who died of sepsis at a hospital.

Chloe Longster, 13, died at Kettering General Hospital in November 2022, less than 18 hours after being admitted with severe pain in her ribs and cold-like symptoms an inquest heard.

The hospital admitted it had failed to deliver the care that Chloe deserved and an inquest at Northampton coroner's court found that there were a string of "missed opportunities" in the care she was given.

A CQC spokesperson said: "We are currently in the process of making inquiries to establish whether there is reasonable suspicion that a criminal offence has been committed."

They added that its inquiries were ongoing and it would "report further" as soon as it was able to.

The missed opportunities in Chloe's care included delays to her sepsis screening and treatment, and delays to prescribe and administer the correct antibiotics, the inquest heard.

Her mother Louise Longster said afterwards: “Chloe had never needed to go to hospital before. I find that really hard.

"She was brought up to be thankful that we have free healthcare. To respect our health workers. In a time of real desperate need when Chloe really needed them, they failed her so cruelly. And cruel is what it was.”

Julie Hogg, the group chief nurse for the University Hospitals of Northamptonshire, said: “We continue to offer our deepest condolences to Chloe’s family for their loss and for failing to deliver the care she deserved.

"We have accepted the findings of the coroner at Chloe’s inquest and, as an organisation committed to learning from our mistakes, are supporting the CQC’s ongoing inquiries appropriately.”

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know