Richard Branson's wife Joan died from 'massive' blood clot after doctor 'failed to prescribe her medication'
Lady Joan Branson, 80, died on November 24 after suffering a cardiac arrest at the private Lister Hospital in Chelsea, west London
A private hospital’s failure to provide preventative medication contributed to the death of Sir Richard Branson’s wife, an inquest has concluded.
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Lady Joan Branson, 80, died on November 24 after suffering a cardiac arrest at the private Lister Hospital in Chelsea, west London.
Westminster Coroner’s Court heard on Wednesday that she died after suffering a pulmonary embolism - a sudden, dangerous blockage in a lung artery, resulting from deep vein thrombosis.
The virtual inquest heard that Lady Joan was admitted to the hospital on November 17 after a fall weeks earlier on Necker Island – a private luxury retreat in the Caribbean’s British Virgin Islands owned by her billionaire husband.
Read more: Coroner wants to ‘learn lessons’ in inquest for Richard Branson’s wife
Professor Fiona Wilcox, senior coroner for Inner West London, said Lady Joan did not receive prophylactic anticoagulants at the hospital despite a “very high risk of developing deep vein thrombosis”.
Giving her conclusion, the coroner said: “I do find her death would have likely been prevented and the lack of anticoagulation did cause or contribute to her death probably.”
After her death, Sir Richard described her as the “shining star around which our family’s universe has always orbited”.
Paying tribute to Lady Joan, Sir Richard wrote: “Life will never be the same without her. But we have 50 incredible years of memories – years filled with tears and laughter, kindness, and a love that shaped our family more than words could ever capture.
“It was a relationship that worked. We just had lots of laughs. We were very lucky.”