Worst case in decade as chief medical officer

A doctor who investigated the death of a young woman after mistakes by Hawke's Bay District Health Board, says it's the worst case he's come across in his decade as chief medical officer. John Gommans says the DHB has made several changes to its systems after 25-year-old Arohaina Gilbert suffocated after her windpipe was compressed by a large, untreated, goiter. A coroner has ruled her life could have been saved, if doctors had realised her condition was life threatening and she'd had surgery more quickly. Dr Gommans says the DHB's own investigation, which he was part of, found there were "multiple missed opportunities" to save her life, and they've moved to ensure it doesn't happen again.