A care worker failed to act after a man said he intended to take his own life, despite the company saying such comments should be treated as an emergency.
The man later took an overdose and died in hospital, according to an investigation by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.
Promedica24 (Lancashire) Limited’s policy requires staff to contact its out-of-hours service and notify the person’s family when someone expresses suicidal intent. But the live-in care worker didn’t do either after the man said he wanted to kill himself.
The investigation also raised concerns about the worker’s understanding of the medication involved. The man’s daughter was told he would have had to ‘eat the whole package’ of medication to ‘finish him off’.
Following her father’s death, his daughter complained about the care he received. Promedica24 refused to investigate, claiming the circumstances had already been considered during a coroner’s inquest.
However, the Ombudsman noted that decision was not consistent with the company’s complaints policy. An inquest and a complaint investigation serve different purposes and the existence of one doesn’t mean the other isn’t needed.
Amerdeep Clarke, of the Ombudsman, described this case as ‘deeply distressing’.
‘When someone is a carer’s charge expresses thoughts of taking their own life, that must always be treated as an emergency,’ Clarke said. ‘Providers have clear policies for exactly this reason, and it is vital that staff are trained and confident enough to follow them under pressure.
‘I hope this case prompts all care providers to reflect on how confident their staff are in recognising and escalating risk, and how robust their complaints processes are, so that families are not left with unanswered questions at the worst possible time.’
The care provider has agreed to apologise to the man’s daughter for the distress caused by its handling of the case. It will also remind staff that complaints should be accepted and investigated in line with its own policy, with particular care taken when dealing with bereaved families.
Refresher training will also be provided on recognising and responding to suicide risk, understanding medication risks and communicating sensitively with people receiving care and their relatives.
Images: Stelios Harissis/UnSplash
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