Fall from Hoist by Care Home Resident Results in Fatality

Thursday, 2nd April 2015

The owners of Meppershall Care Home have been fined following a resident’s fatal fall from a hoist in August 2010. An investigation, undertaken by the Health and Safety Executive, found that neither of the two carers present at the time of the resident’s fall had undertaken training with regards to the application of slings and the sling itself was both complicated and not recommended by Central Bedfordshire Council as appropriate to the resident’s needs.

Mrs May Ward – who was 100-years-old at the time of her death – was not secure within the hoist and fell whilst being moved between chair and bed. Mrs Ward sustained injuries to her skull, hip and knee and died a day later as a consequence of her injuries.

Company director Mohammed Zarook had no experience or knowledge regarding the running of care homes and no evidence was offered to suggest that he had acted to meet his obligations under health and safety legislation via the provision of training or management of common risks, including the moving and handling of residents. Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspections had found even before Mrs Ward’s demise that the home was ‘poor’ or, at best, ‘adequate’. A final inspection in the summer of 2013 resulted in the home’s closure.

After the hearing, Emma Page, HSE Inspector said: “Mrs Ward’s death was a wholly preventable tragedy caused by unacceptable management failings on the part of GA Projects Ltd and Mr Zarook. They put vulnerable residents at the care home at unnecessary risk.

“Working in a care home is a specialised job, which involves dealing with vulnerable people. Care homes must ensure that they have the correct training in place for all their employees, and that they work to adequately assess and mitigate all possible risks, so far as is reasonably practicable.

“Moving and handling is a particularly important issue in the healthcare sector and every year vulnerable people suffer injuries caused by poor moving and handling practice.”

GA Projects Ltd. of Stevenage, Hertfordshire owned three care homes including Meppershall and the court heard evidence regarding a string of serious breaches of health and safety legislation and, indeed, the accident involving Mrs Ward was not the first of its kind to afflict the home. A similar, though non-fatal, incident had previously gone unreported.

GA Projects were fined £50,000.00 and ordered to pay additional costs of nearly £37,000. Mr Zarook was ordered to pay £150,000 and costs of £100,000.