Coronial
TAShospital

Coroner's Finding: Shields, Sandra Mary

Deceased

Sandra Mary Shields

Demographics

63y, female

Date of death

2019-03-25

Finding date

2022-03-18

Cause of death

sepsis and pneumonia due to immobility with sacral ulcer resulting from schizophrenia

AI-generated summary

Sandra Shields, aged 63, died of sepsis and pneumonia secondary to a sacral pressure ulcer in the context of treatment-resistant catatonic schizophrenia. She was admitted to Launceston General Hospital in February 2019 with fever and catatonia. Despite appropriate medical management including antipsychotic medications, benzodiazepines, electroconvulsive therapy, nasogastric feeding, and a Mental Health Act treatment order, her condition proved resistant to treatment. She became progressively unresponsive with a non-healing pressure wound, ultimately requiring transition to palliative care. The coroner found her medical management and care at the hospital to be of good standard. No preventable factors were identified, and the death reflected the natural decline expected in chronic schizophrenia with complications.

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

Contributing factors

  • treatment-resistant catatonia
  • chronic schizophrenia
  • sacral pressure ulcer
  • immobility
  • poor nutritional intake
  • refusal to cooperate with care
Full text

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