An NHS trust has apologized to the late rapper MF DOOM's family after his widow raised questions about the quality of care he received prior to his death.
The circumstances surrounding his passing were unknown until this week, when his widow, Jasmine Dumile, revealed in a statement obtained by LeedsLive that he died due to complications with his blood pressure medication. He reportedly suffered a severe and "rare" reaction to the just-prescribed medication in which his tongue and throat began to swell, leading to breathing problems. While admitted into treatment at St. James University Hospital in Leeds, DOOM eventually passed away at the age of 49.
Dumile reports that DOOM called her "in distress" while in the hospital. In a statement made to Wakefield Coroner’s Court, his room was also allegedly "not set up" for modern expectations.
At an inquest into his death, the NHS trust which runs St. James admits that there were “missed opportunities” surrounding his treatment for his angioedema, the name for the swelling DOOM experienced prior to his passing.
According to The Guardian, assistant coroner Janine Wolstenholme said DOOM's care plan was insufficiently detailed and his doctors were given "false reassurance" when his condition appeared to improve. While his reaction was rare, Wolstenholme acknowledged that angioedema is more common in smokers and people of African-Caribbean descent, both of which DOOM was.
She said that the trust accepted that the doctors did not seek out specialist input from people such as an immunologist.
Dr. Hamish McLure, Chief Medical Officer of the Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust, said in a statement:
"I would like to offer our sincere condolences to Daniel’s family, friends and fans at this difficult time. I apologise that the care he received was not to the standard we would expect. Following his sad death we undertook a serious incident investigation and the report has been shared with Daniel’s family. As a result we have put in place a number of actions and the wider learning from what happened is to be used as a teaching topic in a number of different clinical specialities. We also support the coroner’s recommendation for clearer national guidance and awareness in this area."
