Coronial
QLDaged care

Ms SME - Non-inquest findings

Deceased

Ms SME

Demographics

86y, female

Coroner

McDougall

Date of death

2016-01-21

Finding date

2019-06-17

Cause of death

subdural haemorrhage due to or as a consequence of a fall

AI-generated summary

Ms SME, an 86-year-old resident at a Blue Care nursing home, suffered a fatal subdural haemorrhage following a fall from bed during a sponge bath on 18 January 2016. She died on 21 January 2016. Clinical lessons include: (1) The critical importance of adhering to manual handling protocols, particularly the use of slide sheets for all bed mobility in residents with documented high falls risk and specific movement care plans; (2) Staff failed to use slide sheets despite clear CP22 documentation requiring them; (3) Incomplete positioning of the resident before rolling may have contributed to the fall; (4) The bed mattress setup (king single air mattress on bariatric bed) was noted as potentially problematic by the family; (5) The facility's post-incident quality improvement initiatives (Three Second Campaign, enhanced safety observations, CP22 training) address the root cause of staff not following trained procedures despite competency. Early recognition of the subdural haemorrhage on CT and conservative management given age/comorbidities were appropriate.

AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes. Report an inaccuracy.

Specialties

geriatric medicineemergency medicineneurosurgerypalliative care

Error types

proceduralsystem

Drugs involved

oxycodoneoxycodoneparacetamoloxynorm

Clinical conditions

subdural haemorrhagevascular dementiaischaemic heart diseasecongestive cardiac failurehemiplegiacrush fracture lumbar vertebraehypertensionosteoporosispressure area breakdown

Contributing factors

  • failure to use slide sheet despite documented requirement in care plan
  • incomplete repositioning of resident in bed before rolling
  • staff behavioural choice not to follow manual handling procedure
  • potential mattress setup issues (air mattress on bariatric bed creating misfit)
  • vascular dementia with brain atrophy predisposing to more severe intracranial injury from minor trauma
  • high falls risk not adequately managed during personal care

Coroner's recommendations

  1. All staff to undergo manual handling training and appropriate use of slide sheets, focusing on use with rolls, position of residents in bed, angle and height of bed
  2. Safety observations to be carried out throughout shifts by registered staff to ensure slide sheets are used appropriately when rolling residents, with focus on technique
  3. Training with all staff regarding CP22 and mobility care plans including accessibility and accurate reading and interpretation of care plans
  4. Training to be provided to all staff in use of call bell with focus on emergency call bell and response expectations
Full text

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