An after-hours GP has apologised for not conducting an abdominal examination on an elderly man who died of sepsis two days after he consulted the doctor complaining of pain and nausea.

The GP told the New Zealand Health and Disability Commissioner that he accepted that he should have performed an abdominal examination and taken a more comprehensive history.

The patient, aged in his 70s, was referred to the medical centre in 2017 by an after-hours triage service after he called to complain he had been feeling unwell for two days, with nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain.

He had multiple comorbidities, including chronic renal failure, congestive health failure, atrial fibrillation, peripheral vascular disease and pre-diabetes.