THE former boss of Prestons of Bolton died a day after hospital staff moved him out of a ward with superior nursing care, an inquest heard.

Retired jeweller Andrew Duckworth died aged 63 in the Royal Bolton Hospital on June 4 after developing septicaemia from two abscesses in his back.

He had vomited before his heart stopped, Bolton Coroner’s Court was told yesterday.

Mr Duckworth was admitted to hospital for a second time on May 23, the court heard, when blood tests showed he had an infection — but there were delays in diagnosing its source.

Doctors at The Royal Bolton wanted Mr Duckworth to have an MRI scan on Monday afternoon, but the hospital does not offer them on weekends and bank holidays.

When asked on Monday, May 26, experts at Salford Royal Hospital said the scan could wait until the following day.

The court heard that an earlier diagnosis would not have affected the antibiotics programme that Mr Duckworth was already receiving.

Mr Duckworth, who lived with wife Joanna in Abbeylea Drive, Westhoughton, was also moved from a high dependency unit (HDU) to a general ward with fewer nurses.

Dr Kevin Jones, clinical lead for acute medicine at the Royal Bolton, who made the decision to move Mr Duckworth, said: “This is a recurring theme when it comes to high dependency care. There comes a time when a patient no longer needs level 2 care and can be stepped down.

“It always comes as a disappointment to relatives because they have had one-to-one nursing.

“The thing is, by June 3, Mr Duckworth required no organ support and was not even receiving oxygen.”

He added that the medical treatment Mr Duckworth received did not change because of the ward switch.

Mr Duckworth’s wife Joanna had told the court that her husband’s condition deteriorated rapidly overnight between June 3 and the day he died. Dr Jones said, after hearing the evidence in court, that he felt an “overwhelming” release of sepsis was probably what culminated in Mr Duckworth vomiting before his heart stopped.

Mr Duckworth, described as an active man, interested in sport, had played golf less than a month before his death and had been fine.

He jarred his back after misjudging a step when leaving a shop on May 15 and went to the Royal Bolton’s A&E, where he was assessed and discharged with three different painkillers.

His condition did not improve and he returned to hospital after he became “clammy, sweating and confused” according to Mrs Duckworth.

The court heard that bacteria relating to the abscess had got into Mr Duckworth’s bloodstream, bringing on septicaemia.

Mr Kamran Hassan, a consultant spinal surgeon at Salford Royal Hospital, said he had not recommended Mr Duckworth have his abscess drained because operating would be “extremely risky”.

Coroner Jennifer Leeming returned a verdict of natural causes.