In a heartbreaking case, the children of Bill Trotter, a 73-year-old man from Carlisle, Cumbria, are refusing to bury their father’s body until they receive answers about the alleged medical mistakes that they believe led to his death.
Bill Trotter was admitted to the Cumberland Infirmary in May 2020 with a toe infection, but passed away just two months later after falling into a diabetic coma. His children, Mike and Kelly Trotter, allege that he was repeatedly misdiagnosed and believe his body, currently being held in the mortuary of Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI), could provide crucial evidence.
The North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Trust has stated that a “thorough and transparent review” found “no failings in care that contributed to Mr Trotter’s death.” However, the Trotter siblings strongly disagree, claiming a series of medical blunders, including a failure to properly treat their father’s initial toe infection, an unnecessary amputation, and inaccurate recording of his blood sugar levels.
“He was screaming in pain, it was just horrendous,” said Mike Trotter, 48, as he recounted his father’s ordeal. The family also alleges that Bill Trotter was left for 16 days with a bladder issue before a catheter was fitted, and that they had to purchase their own wound care gel because the hospital had run out.
Despite the trust’s assertion that the investigation found no issues with the care provided, the Trotter family remains adamant that medical mistakes were made and are determined to get to the truth. They have been informed by the senior coroner for Cumbria, Kirsty Gomersal, that an inquest is not required as the case does not meet the legal threshold.
Carlisle Labour MP Julie Elliot, who has met with the family on multiple occasions, expressed her “greatest sympathy” for their loss and believes that new legislation, known as the Hillsborough Law, will make it easier for people like the Trotters to “get the answers they’re looking for.” The law aims to impose a statutory duty of candour on public authorities, ensuring they are transparent about mistakes.
“Having that duty of candor, will give families the confidence that, if they’re not being shared information, then the people who are not sharing it are at risk of prosecution,” Elliot said.
The Trotter siblings have made it clear that they will not move their father’s body from the RVI mortuary “until we get answers, even if that’s years.” They are not motivated by money, but simply want to uncover the true cause of their father’s death.
“He was failed, a hundred percent he was failed, and I think he’d be proud of us for what we’re doing,” said Bill Trotter’s daughter, Kelly.
The North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Trust has acknowledged the family’s concerns and stated that the investigation findings have been shared with them. However, the Trotters remain unsatisfied and determined to pursue the truth, no matter how long it takes.