A crash victim died after a "widespread lack of teamwork" at a Norfolk hospital meant his deteriorating condition was not acted on quickly enough.

Paul Leake, a postman from Tottenhill, near King's Lynn, died at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital three days after a collision on the A10, at the Watlington Road junction. He was 50.

The incident happened at around 6.12am on December 13, 2021, when Land Rover driver Darren Godfrey, of Wiggenhall St Germans, pulled from the junction into Mr Leake's path.

Godfrey, 45, admitted to causing death by dangerous driving and was convicted at Norwich Crown Court in December.

But an inquest has heard there was a "strong possibility" Mr Leake's death could have been prevented were it not for failings in his hospital treatment.

The court heard he had suffered fractures to his ribs and wrists in the crash but was deemed to be stable.

He remained in the hospital but died on December 16 after his condition rapidly worsened and he went into cardiac arrest.

Following his death, the hospital investigated his treatment, which said there had been "persistent failures around a deteriorating patient".

It found:

  • Confusion over which department was responsible for his care 
  • A failure to review whether he should return to the critical care unit after he started deteriorating
  • Multiple missed opportunities to escalate his care
  • Junior staff fearing to escalate concerns out of "fear of negative repercussions" from senior workers

The hospital's serious incident investigation report, which was read to the court, stated there had been a "considerable and widespread lack of teamwork" during his treatment.

Emily Hodges, the hospital's lead nurse for critical care, told the court that following Mr Leake's death a 40-point action plan had been drawn up to address the concerns.

These include "significant" improvements to handovers when patients are moved between departments.

Jacqueline Lake, Norfolk's senior coroner, concluded Mr Leake had died as a result of the road traffic collision - stating she was bound by the crown court's ruling over the case.