Deceased
Diane Maria Hillgrove
Demographics
34y, female
Coroner
Coroner Darren Bracken
Date of death
2018-07-07
Finding date
2018-07-29
Cause of death
Mixed drug toxicity
AI-generated summary
Diane Maria Hillgrove, a 34-year-old woman with chronic pain, PTSD, anxiety and substance abuse history, died from mixed drug toxicity on 7 July 2018. Post-mortem toxicology revealed elevated pregabalin (51 mg/L), morphine, diazepam, doxylamine and other CNS depressants. Despite careful prescribing management by her GPs using weekly reviews, restricted pharmacy pickups and prescription monitoring, she obtained pregabalin from multiple doctors and used diverted medications. On 6 July, Dr V. appropriately increased her pregabalin to 150mg for acute abdominal pain, but she likely consumed the entire 56-tablet supply overnight. Key lessons: pregabalin's abuse potential matches opioids and benzodiazepines; real-time prescription monitoring (SafeScript) was not yet available and still excludes pregabalin; doctor-shopping and medication diversion are common in chronic pain patients; even excellent care by dedicated GPs cannot always prevent deaths when patients are determined to obtain excess medications.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes. Report an inaccuracy.
Specialties
Error types
Drugs involved
Clinical conditions
87y · Female·Complications of head injuries and left proximal femur fracture sustained in a f…
An 87-year-old woman with Parkinson's disease sustained an unwitnessed fall at a residential aged care facility, resulting in head injuries and a hip fracture. Critical clinical lessons emerged: (1) neurological observat…
90y · Female·Choking
A 90-year-old woman with dysphagia died from choking after consuming thin fluid (coffee) against medical recommendation. She had been reviewed by a speech pathologist on 15 November 2024 who recommended thick fluids only…
74y · Male·Acute myocardial infarction complicated by multiple organ failure
Ronald William Beaumont, 74, died from acute myocardial infarction complicated by multiple organ failure following a second shoulder washout procedure. Key clinical lessons: (1) Despite inadvertent withholding of dual an…
Source and disclaimer
This page reproduces or summarises information from publicly available findings published by Australian coroners' courts. Coronial is an independent educational resource and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of any coronial court or government body.
Content may be incomplete, reformatted, or summarised. Some material may have been redacted or restricted by court order or privacy requirements. Always refer to the original court publication for the authoritative record.
Copyright in original materials remains with the relevant government jurisdiction. AI-generated summaries and tagging are for educational purposes only, may contain inaccuracies, and must not be treated as legal documents. We welcome feedback for correction — report an inaccuracy here.