Mum, 31, found dead at home was 'let down by NHS', heartbroken family say

The family of a 31-year-old mum found dead at her home say she was "let down" by the treatment she received from the NHS. Louise Hollins, who suffered mental health problems, should have been admitted to Harplands Hospital, claims her family.

It comes as an inquest this week failed to pinpoint exactly what caused the death of Louise at her home in Bentilee, Stoke-on-Trent, on May 5, 2024. Following the inquest, sister Zara said: "She had been let down by mental health services for years. This shouldn't have happened. People need to know about what goes on."

The inquest heard Louise had been struggling with bipolar effective disorder since she was 18. She passed away less than a month after being put on the mood-stabilising drug lithium.

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Early evidence at the inquest suggested Louise may have died as a result of serotonin syndrome - which can occur when too many mood-regulating drugs are present in the blood - leading to heart failure. But while a toxicology report did indicate she had multiple SSRIs in her system, it also showed they weren’t at dangerous levels.

A post-mortem examination revealed she had not suffered any physical trauma or injuries prior to death - leaving medical experts stumped, reported Stoke-on-Trent Live.

Dr Patrick Izediuno, the Sutherland Centre psychiatrist who placed Louise onto her new course of medication, told the inquest: “I first met Louise in February 2024 following a number of missed appointments, dating back to December 2023.

"When I did meet her, she admitted that her mental health was bad. But she said that she was not suicidal and she was not self-harming. We planned to wean her off flupentixol - an anti-psychotic drug - and put her back on lithium. Lithium is a mood stabiliser which can regulate symptoms of bipolar effective disorder.

"As far as I was aware, and from the notes I had available, there were no indicators that she had a history of cardiac issues. She wasn’t taking any other medications that could affect her heart.” The inquest heard the lithium dosage was doubled on May 3, 2024.

Dr Izediuno added: “At the appointment she admitted self-harming but denied drinking. Her sister, Jodie, said she had been displaying signs of paranoia. Louise was able to engage with me and she wasn’t angry. She didn’t display any unusual perceptions.

"Given that the lithium levels were below the normal range, we followed the usual plan of increasing her dose and continuing to monitor her.” Asked whether upping Louise’s lithium dose could have caused serotonin syndrome, Dr Izediuno said: “I can’t comment on the possibility of serotonin syndrome as she was not yet tested again after her dosage increase.

"Lithium on its own does not tend to induce serotonin syndrome. She was not taking any other SSRIs as far as we were aware. She did not indicate to me that she was suffering any side effects.”

But Louise’s family remained convinced that the lithium dosage was causing her confusion, which is a symptom of serotonin syndrome. They argued that upping her dose was irresponsible given her condition.

Sister Zara said: “I don’t understand how you could not recognise her confusion. There were days where we received countless confused messages.”

Brother Christopher added: “Can I just check we’re talking about the same person here?” Meanwhile, sister-in-law Stephanie remarked: “She told us herself that she needed to be admitted to Harplands Hospital."

North Staffordshire coroner Daniel Powell delivered an unascertained ruling. He said: “A toxicologist advised it may have potentially been the result of serotonin syndrome, but the concentration of drugs in her system was low. Such an adverse reaction was possible, but not probable. Therefore, the death will be recorded as not ascertained.

“Just because she was confused doesn’t mean she had serotonin syndrome. It also doesn’t mean she had cardiac arrhythmia. Two possibilities remain. I cannot determine whether this death resulted from a complication of drugs or simply from natural causes.”