Finding into death of Mrs DA
Deceased
Mrs DA
Demographics
59y, female
Date of death
2014-03-26
Finding date
2017-06-21
Cause of death
Multiple drug toxicity (propoxyphene, citalopram, oxazepam and others)
AI-generated summary
Mrs DA, aged 59, died from multiple drug toxicity (propoxyphene, citalopram, oxazepam and others) in March 2014. She had suffered a severe stroke in 2006 with resultant significant disability, chronic pain, and subsequent depression with suicidal ideation. Despite psychiatric involvement and GP care, she remained resistant to supportive interventions and had clearly expressed her intention to end her life over several years. She self-administered a fatal overdose of prescribed medications. The coroner noted this reflected broader end-of-life care issues rather than a failure in clinical management. Key clinical lessons include the importance of recognising persistent suicidal ideation in patients with irreversible disability, offering palliative care and psychosocial support early, and considering escalation despite patient resistance when suicide risk is high.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Drugs involved
Clinical conditions
Procedures
Contributing factors
- chronic irreversible disability from stroke
- chronic pain
- depression with persistent suicidal ideation
- diminished quality of life
- access to prescribed medications
- patient resistance to supportive interventions and respite care
- suicidal intent over multiple years
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