A doctors’ surgery has been advised by a coroner to “reflect closely”on its practices after the death of a patient.

Dorothy Newlove died from pulmonary embolism - a blood clot in her lungs - after developing deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

Mrs Newlove, who was 82, was at her home in Albany Road, Sittingbourne, with her husband Clifford Newlove on the morning of November 28 last year.

He went to make her a cup of tea and when he returned she had died.

Mrs Newlove, a retired shopkeeper, had undergone knee replacement surgery at KIMS hospital in Newnham Court Way, Maidstone, six weeks earlier on September 26, which had gone well.

Although one of the risks of surgery is deep vein thrombosis, she had been prescribed anti-coagulants, foot pumps and protective stockings to wear for six weeks and referred for physiotherapy treatment. She showed no signs of DVT at a follow-up visit with her surgeon Simon Ellis.

Mr Ellis was concerned she was suffering from a general malaise, complaining of dizziness, loss of appetite and diarrhoea. He wrote to her GP surgery, Chestnuts in East Street, Sittingbourne, suggesting it carried out blood tests to find the cause of the problem. The surgery did not.

Mrs Newlove suffered increasingly from vomiting and diarrhoea and had several falls, one resulting in a stay in Sittingbourne Memorial Hospital where she was given antibiotics, which still failed to cure the problem.

Back at home, Mrs Newlove, too ill to leave the house, made repeated calls to her surgery seeking a home visit, but was told she could only have a telephone consultation.

Eventually her daughter Ann Tyler visited the surgery demanding a home visit. After some arguing, Dr Akanimo Ukpong did make a home call, but was not overly concerned. He told her inquest he thought Mrs Newlove had “slowly resolving gastroenteritis.” He did not take samples of her blood or stools for testing.

Assistant coroner Sonia Hayes recorded the death as ‘unnatural’ and said the surgery had been aware of its patient’s deteriorating condition and the blood screening request. She told Dr Ukpong the practice should ‘reflect closely on that.’

Mrs Tyler said afterwards: “We do feel my mother did not get the attention she needed. She was neglected at the end.”

Practice manager, Shaun Potter, said: “I am unable to comment on individual patients however the practice will of course work with the coroner on any recommendations shared with the practice.”