THE niece of a woman who died in hospital is battling to win the right for an independent review of her treatment.

Eighty-five-year-old grandmother Barbara Phillips, known as Barbie, was admitted to Worcestershire Royal Hospital with the killer lung disease pulmonary fibrosis, last July.

Her niece, Marion Parker, said she had never seen anyone die in such pain.

Mrs Parker, who had worked with elderly people for 30 years, complained about her aunt's treatment and called for an independent review of the case.

But Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust and the West Midlands South Strategic Health Authority have refused to back her call - going against the opinion of an external expert they commissioned to assess the case.

Mrs Parker, 54, said her aunt, of Woodgate Residential Care Home, Malvern, had not been made comfortable in the hours leading up to her death, and had been given a "cursory examination" by a junior doctor.

The external assessor, professor of respiratory medicine and consultant physician Monica Spiteri, found a number of other flaws in Mrs Phillips' treatment.

Prof Spiteri concluded that her pain was caused by an underlying heart condition, which was not picked up by staff at the hospital.

Prof Spiteri said pulmonary fibrosis on its own did not cause pain.

"Unfortunately, no diagnosis other than pulmonary fibrosis was considered and/or investigated," she said.

"It is my opinion that an independent review panel is required to facilitate satisfactory resolution."

Health chiefs at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust received the assessment in early February.

However, Mrs Parker said she did not see the report until she demanded it in late June.

She said she was offered an apology by the trust in May, but was not told of the contents of the report.

"My aunt was a wonderful woman," said Mrs Parker, of Moatway, Great Malvern.

"She was like a second mother to me and she called me the daughter she never had,"

"The trust's managers need to have a good look at themselves."

A trust spokesman said that Mrs Parker's complaint had been considered in detail, and it had fully answered each point in her original complaint.

"On that basis, we didn't think it was appropriate to carry out an independent review, and we informed her of that decision," he said.

He said Mrs Parker left a meeting in May before health managers could give her a copy of the report.

"We've now received a second request for an independent review to be carried out, and we are awaiting more details from her before a decision can be made on that request," he added.

MP backs call for inquiry

WEST Worcestershire MP Sir Michael Spicer has backed Mrs Parker's appeal from the start.

The Tory MP said there were many disturbing features about the case.

He said he would take it up in Parliament if health chiefs refused to give in to Mrs Parker's demands.

"I will take this to health ministers if necessary," said Sir Michael.

"It seems absolutely essential that there is an independent review of the matter.

"It would reassure the public that the authorities don't close ranks when this sort of thing happens."

The call for a review was also supported by an external assessor, Prof Monica Spiteri, who felt there was a case to answer.

Patients happy with the health service

PATIENTS have been struggling to ring through to their GP surgeries - but they have not had to wait long for appointments when their calls were answered.

The 2003 National Patient Survey found Worcestershire patients were generally satisfied with the service they received from both GP surgeries and hospitals.

Almost 1,500 people gave their views about services provided by South Worcestershire Primary Care Trust and Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust.

The survey, carried out by the Commission for Health Improvement, asked about issues such as access and waiting times, quality of care and the amount of information and choice.

South Worcestershire PCT was in the top 20 per cent of trusts for GP appointment waiting times and convenient surgery opening times.

It also performed well in giving family planning advice and in explaining test results.

But it was in the worst 20 per cent for contacting GP surgeries by phone, and patients felt they were not given a great choice when being referred to a hospital or specialist.

Mike Ridley, PCT chief executive, was delighted to see people were satisfied and said that the trust would be working to give patients an even better service.

The acute trust was found to be providing a satisfactory service in almost every area, but it performed poorly in telling patients who they should contact if they had concerns after treatment.

Doctors, it found, gave good explanations about why treatment was being given and kept patients well informed.

Emergency patients also reported feeling safe when going for treatment at the trust's hospitals.

A trust spokesman said the survey highlighted a number of areas where it was performing well.

"It also highlighted areas where there's a need for more attention, and we will be looking at how to improve," he said.