The death of an elderly woman who fell out of a hospital bed could have been prevented, according to a coroner’s report.
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The 91-year-old Hobart woman died from injuries suffered when admitted to the Royal Hobart Hospital in December 2015.
The woman was taken to hospital after hurting her wrist following a fall from her bed.
Coroner Rod Chandler, in his report released on Monday, said the hospital and family members agreed it was not safe for the woman to return to her home as she was unable to care for herself.
A few days after being admitted to hospital, the woman, again, fell from her bed and fractured her hip.
It was agreed that surgery wasn’t an option and palliative care arrangements were made.
She died three days later.
A nurse told the coroner that an assessment was made and determined the woman was at high risk of falling.
Further information was left blank on the form. Reasons for the lack of information on the form was not clarified.
Upon admittance to hospital, the nurse told the woman to press the buzzer for help to move out of the bed and to not move without assistance.
However, according to family members and the woman’s medical records, which the hospital had access to, she most likely had dementia or Alzhiemer’s. Therefore it was unlikely she would have remembered those instructions.
“In my view, Mrs F’s fall and its fatal consequences would, in all likelihood, have been avoided if the RHH had ensured that her falls risk was comprehensively assessed and strategies put in place to respond to that risk,” Coroner Chandler said.
“It follows that her death was preventable.”
