Coronial
SAaged care

Coroner's Finding: Bell, Aileene

Deceased

Aileene Bell

Demographics

85y, female

Date of death

2020-08-31

Finding date

2024-01-19

Cause of death

general inanition on a background of vascular dementia and a recent right neck of femur fracture (operated)

AI-generated summary

An 85-year-old woman with vascular dementia, congestive cardiac failure, and atrial fibrillation sustained a right neck of femur fracture from a fall at her aged care facility on 5 August 2020, despite being on a sensor mat, ultra-low bed with crash mats, and hip protectors with 30-minute safety checks. She underwent successful open reduction and internal fixation at Flinders Medical Centre and was discharged on 9 August 2020. Despite initial alertness, she declined rapidly over the following week with decreased mobility and food/fluid intake, transitioning to comfort care before dying on 31 August 2020 from general inanition. The coroner found care was exemplary, with appropriate balance between safety and autonomy. No preventable factors were identified, and no recommendations were made.

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

Specialties

geriatric medicineorthopaedic surgerygeneral practice

Clinical conditions

vascular dementiahip fracture (neck of femur)congestive cardiac failurehypertensionatrial fibrillationcoeliac diseaseanxiety/depressive disorder

Procedures

open reduction and internal fixation

Contributing factors

  • vascular dementia with lack of insight into capabilities
  • high falls risk
  • rapid post-operative decline
  • inability to understand risk
Full text

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.