Care failings led to death at home

FAILINGS werehighlighted at a Weymouth care home after a 90-year-old man fell and later died, a coroner has ruled.

William Edward Armstrong died shortly after falling at Agincourt Care Home in Weymouth on February 18, 2012.

Speaking at an inquest at County Hall in Dorchester, assistant coroner for Dorset Richard Middleton found there had been failings at the care home but he added that the death of Mr Armstrong was not a result of negligence.

Mr Armstrong, known as Billy, was found by a care worker in the early hours of the morning collapsed at the bottom of a fire exit stairwell.

The coroner issued a narrative verdict. He suggested Mr Armstrong had left his room through his patio door undetected between 5.30am and 6.45am.

He said an inadequate warning system failed to alert staff which allowed Mr Armstrong to wander to a nearby stairwell and open a fire exit door that should have been locked.

The coroner suggested Mr Armstrong then either slipped or fell, hitting his head in the process. He was taken to Dorset County Hospital and died later that evening.

Pathologist Dr Mark Deverill, speaking as a witness, recorded Mr Armstrongs death as natural. He said he suffered from pulmonary edema and bronchial pneumonia.

The coroner agreed with this statement but suggested on the evidence heard hypothermia was also a contributing factor.

Prior to the incident, Mr Armstrong had been living with Alzheimers and suffered from dementia. He was transferred to Agincourt Care Home on January 6. He had previously been cared for by his wife, Ruth.

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Care failings led to death at home