'My wife died due to medics' 12-minute delay on fix that should've taken 10 seconds'

A heartbroken husband has slammed a after he claimed his beloved wife died after took 12 minutes to fix a failed machine, which he claimed should have taken 10 seconds. Grandmother-of-six June Liddell's brain was starved of oxygen after an alleged delay in fixing an error after a that reportedly "went well".

Her husband Stephen has spoken out for the first time after the grandmother-of-six died at the in Brighton, while a perfusionist - a specialist medical machine operator - tried to resolve the issue in the heart lung bypass machine. Stephen shared his anger and heartbreak after June died 11 days after the machine issue from a brain injury.

June went into hospital in March 2023 for an operation on her aorta, a major blood vessel, but the heart lung bypass machine's automated electronic remote clamp had a "rare" malfunction. This stopped oxygenated blood from going to June whilst it remained in a closed position, an earlier this year heard.

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June’s husband Stephen, 69, who is suing the University Hospitals Sussex Trust for clinical negligence in relation to his wife’s death, has called for greater training to prevent the same thing happening again. He shared his heartbreaking ordeal and said the last time he spoke to his beloved wife was before she went into the operating theatre.

He said: "When I dropped her off at the hospital it was the last time I ever spoke to her. Leaving her there was one of the worst mistakes of my life. I keep blaming myself as I think how long would she have survived without the operation?

"What’s worse is that the surgeon said that the operation went well and she would still be here today if it wasn’t for the medical staff’s failure to fix the machine. All he had to do was look at one of the valves, which is apparently the most obvious thing to do, but he didn’t for 12 minutes and it led to June dying.

"I’m so angry as they were clearly totally incompetent. How can it be possible that the perfusionist was allowed to carry on working after this, even when he was under investigation? It’s not right." Following the operation June was moved to Eastbourne District Hospital and died on 11 days later on April 1.

In a Prevention of Future Deaths report the coroner asked LivaNova, the makers of the machine, to explain why an error message that came up when the machine malfunctioned was not in the instructions for use (IFU) - but in a letter to the coroner, LivaNova maintained that the error message was in the IFU.

The letter said June's death "should have been avoided" and added: "No additions to the IFUs would have prevented the tragic situation encountered in this incident since the perfusionist for unknown reasons did not follow their training, ignored the clear and obvious warning signs, and failed to immediately resolve the obstruction as they should have done."

Stephen, who moved to Heathfield, East Sussex, following June’s death, said: "June’s passing has deeply affected our two children and grandchildren. I was devastated to lose my wife of 46 years in such avoidable circumstances. She was such a kind and caring person and always wanted to help others. It is just so sad.

"I want all staff who work in operating theatres to be made aware of this potential issue with the machine and be trained on how to resolve it. I don’t want anyone else to have to go through what we have."

Nicholas Leahy, a specialist medical negligence solicitor at who represents Stephen, said: “June’s death was completely avoidable and my client is understandably angry about the delay in identifying the cause of the obstructed blood flow to June which ultimately caused her to pass away.

"This is a tragic case that highlights the importance of medical professionals being properly trained in the life saving equipment they operate. While nothing will bring June back, we have every intention to fight for justice through the civil courts."

Dr Ryan Watkins, Chief of Service for Specialist Division at University Sussex told The : "We offer our sincerest condolences to June Liddell's family. The failure of the heart-lung machine during surgery, which led to this tragic outcome, was an incredibly rare event.

"We have fully investigated what happened and developed new practices – we have also shared our learning nationally, to do all we can to keep patients safe in the future, and we have introduced new heart-lung machines for use during surgery."