STAFF at Colchester Hospital were under ‘enormous pressure’ when a woman suffered a cardiac arrest hours after an operation which she had waited three days for, an inquest heard.

Chloe Hunt, who had a history of self-harming due to her mental health, was admitted to A&E at Colchester Hospital on Friday, March 11, 2022.

A scan showed she had swallowed four pens.

An operation to remove the pens did not take place for three more days, and Miss Hunt died of a cardiac arrest on Tuesday, March 15, 16 hours after the procedure.

An inquest has been held to ascertain whether Miss Hunt, who was 21 when she died, could have been saved.

Essex corner’s court heard on Wednesday how Miss Hunt discharged herself from Colchester Hospital the day after she was admitted because she “did not feel she was being taken seriously”.

Echo: Coroner - area coroner for Essex, Sonia Hayes, will oversee the inquest as it runs into its third day on ThursdayCoroner - area coroner for Essex, Sonia Hayes, will oversee the inquest as it runs into its third day on Thursday (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest)

She then returned four hours later because she was still in pain, but did not receive a second scan when she was readmitted.

Mr Hyder, a general surgeon who worked at Colchester Hospital in 2022, said: “In my time at Colchester Hospital, the services were under enormous pressure, with a lack of general doctors and nurses.

“Repeating a scan would have caused more delays in arranging a gastroscopy.”

An operation eventually took place on Monday, March 14 for surgeons to remove what they initially thought were three pens, which had led to the collapse of her stomach.

During the operation, it became apparent there were four pens in her system because one had not shown up on a scan.

Surgeons sedated Miss Hunt instead of using a general anaesthetic, and went on to remove two pens from her system.

Echo: Operation - surgeons removed two pens when Chloe Hunt said she did not want the operation to continueOperation - surgeons removed two pens when Chloe Hunt said she did not want the operation to continue (Image: Newsquest)

Half an hour into the operation, Miss Hunt said she did not wish the procedure to continue, and two pens were left inside her digestive tract.

The inquest heard the surgery itself did not contribute to the cardiac arrest, but area coroner for Essex Sonia Hayes drew attention to Miss Hunt’s falling heart rate and blood pressure in the hours after the procedure.

Miss Hunt went into cardiac arrest in the early hours of Tuesday, March 15 and her death was confirmed at 11.30am.

The inquest, which is set to conclude on Thursday, will conclude what caused the cardiac arrest.

Anyone struggling with their mental health should contact Samaritans on 116 123.