---
title: "Jersey to introduce Martha’s Rule equivalent by end of November"
url: https://www.nsfw.info/jersey-marthas-rule-equivalent-november-patient-escalation/
published: 2026-10-16T16:00:50+00:00
modified: 2026-10-16T16:00:50+00:00
author: "Chief Editor"
categories: ["News"]
image: https://www.nsfw.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/jersey-marthas-rule-equivalent-november-patient-escalation-1024x572.webp
summary: "Health and Care Jersey will introduce an urgent patient escalation policy by end of November, following the death of Sue Brizell after sepsis warnings were igno"
publisher: NSFW (https://www.nsfw.info)
---

# Jersey to introduce Martha’s Rule equivalent by end of November

**In brief:** Health and Care Jersey has confirmed it will introduce an urgent patient escalation policy by the end of November, allowing patients, families and carers to request an urgent clinical review when they feel their concerns are being dismissed. The move follows the death of Islander Sue Brizell, whose family raised ignored warnings about sepsis, and mirrors England’s Martha’s Rule. The family hopes the Jersey version will be named “Sue’s Rule” or “Sue’s Law” and eventually enshrined in legislation.

## What happened to Sue Brizell

The new policy has its roots in a tragedy at Jersey’s General Hospital. The Jersey Evening Post reports that Sue Brizell, a 72-year-old described as “vulnerable”, was left in what an inquest heard was “severe and unmanageable” pain for three days following an operation to remove a gallstone. Her daughter, Amanda Littleton, told the inquest that concerns she raised about her mother showing signs of sepsis were “dismissed” by the on-call staff nurse. Ms Brizell subsequently died.

Acting coroner Dr Deryn Evans issued a prevention-of-future-deaths report formally recommending the introduction of an “established policy or law” allowing relatives to seek a second opinion when their concerns are being dismissed by clinicians. Dr Evans said the measure should ideally reflect Martha’s Rule, which has been rolled out across every A&E department in England following the death of 13-year-old Martha Mills in 2021, after her family’s concerns were similarly ignored by medical staff.

## What Jersey is introducing, and when

Tabetha Darmon, director of nursing, AHPs, clinical governance and quality at Health and Care Jersey, has confirmed to the JEP that the coroner’s recommendation will be acted upon. “Work is under way to introduce an escalation policy in Jersey, which will be informed by the principles of Martha’s Rule alongside the recommendations made by an independent review which was carried out following Ms Brizell’s death,” she said.

The aim, Ms Darmon explained, is to ensure that “patients, families and carers have a clear route to raise concerns and request an urgent clinical review if they believe a patient’s condition is deteriorating.” Subject to final operational preparations, governance and Board approvals, the policy is expected to be in place by the end of November 2026.

The JEP understands the escalation policy will become part of the Health Department’s established patient safety framework and governance arrangements, and will be evaluated and reported through existing governance processes. The department is also said to be considering how to ensure the policy can only be discontinued or withdrawn by the Health Minister, giving it a degree of permanence beyond a standard internal procedure.

## The family’s hopes: “Sue’s Rule” and lasting protection

Amanda Littleton, speaking on behalf of Ms Brizell’s family, told the JEP they were “really encouraged” by the progress being made. However, the family have a clear wish: they want the policy to carry its own Jersey identity as “Sue’s Rule”, which Ms Littleton said would “clearly distinguish Jersey’s approach from Martha’s Rule” while serving as a “fitting legacy for Mum.”

Ms Darmon confirmed that a formal name has not yet been finalised, but that “‘Sue’s Law’ is under consideration”, with the department pledging to continue engaging with the family and other stakeholders as implementation progresses.

For Ms Littleton and the family, the name is ultimately secondary to substance. “Patients, relatives and carers must have a clear route to escalate concerns when someone is deteriorating, and they feel they are not being heard,” she said. The family’s deeper concern is durability: they want the policy “protected from simply falling away in the future” and have indicated they would pursue statutory protection if the policy framework proves insufficient. Ms Littleton also noted a practical reason for a distinct Jersey name: if legislation were ever pursued, calling it “Martha’s Law” could create confusion, since Martha’s Rule in England is a policy framework rather than a statute.

## The NSFW Perspective

It is difficult to argue with the principle here. When a family watches a loved one deteriorate and feels ignored by the very people entrusted with her care, something has gone badly wrong. The fact that it took a coroner’s prevention-of-future-deaths report to prompt action is, at minimum, uncomfortable reading for Health and Care Jersey.

The end-of-November target is encouraging, but the family’s instinct to push for statutory protection deserves serious consideration. Policies have a habit of quietly gathering dust; laws are considerably harder to shelve. Whether Jersey’s Government of Jersey has the appetite to legislate, rather than simply issue a policy document and move on, will be the real test of how seriously patient safety is being taken. The Brizell family have done the island a service by pressing this case. The least Jersey can do is make sure Sue’s name, if it is attached to this policy, stands for something that genuinely endures.

*Source: [Jersey Evening Post](https://jerseyeveningpost.com/news/2026/10/16/marthas-law-equivalent-to-be-introduced-next-month-health-confirm)*