Pauline Marking, suffering severe stomach issues, diagnosed in hospital with nosebleed and sent home by PA

A coroner has warned about the role of physician associates in NHS hospitals after a woman with severe abdominal problems was wrongly diagnosed as having a nosebleed and died four days later.

The family of Pauline Marking, 77, were under the mistaken impression she had been seen by a doctor when she was examined in an emergency department, rather than a physician associate (PA) with far less training.