A mother-of-six died from a blood clot which was not spotted until the day of her death even though she was seen twice by hospital doctors, an inquest has concluded.

Pauline Bugden, 49, had undergone knee surgery after injuring her right leg and left shoulder during a fall at home in December 2006.

She was admitted to the Medway Maritime Hospital in Gillingham twice after the operation but died from a pulmonary embolism (PE) in the lung after receiving care which the hospital has admitted was sub-standard.

Mrs Bugden's family is awaiting an undisclosed payout from Medway Foundation Trust after it accepted liability.

Mrs Bugden stayed in hospital for two days after the operation before being sent home wearing a plaster cast.

An inquest at County Hall in Maidstone was told Mrs Bugden, from Chatham, Kent, heard Mrs Bugden, who suffered epileptic seizures and was clinically obese, was seen by a locum accident and emergency doctor on the evening of January 12 after experiencing shortness of breath and coughing. She was discharged with antibiotics after being diagnosed with pneumonia.

Mrs Bugden was admitted to the hospital again on the late afternoon of January 22 with persistent diarrhoea and vomiting after being referred by an out of hours GP.

Leon Pee, then a senior house officer, recalled Mrs Bugden, who only had one kidney, was severely dehydrated and though breathing fast, had not complained of shortness of breath. He added she had said she was anxious about being in hospital and he arranged for her to be immediately rehydrated.

Asked by the coroner when a clot became a likely scenario, Dr Pee said Mrs Bugden began complaining of shortness of breath and chest pain at around 7.20 p.m. and he ordered tests to be carried out. She suffered a cardiac arrest at 7.57 p.m. and died.

Recording a narrative verdict, Roger Sykes, coroner for mid-Kent and Medway, said: "She had symptoms consistent with pulmonary embolus when assessed at the hospital on January 12 which was not diagnosed."