Select a region
The son of an islander who died after being wrongly prescribed anti-psychotic drugs has said it was "shameful" that it took a tragedy for certain health protocols to be improved – ahead of a coroner concluding that "neglect" contributed to the death today.
At the conclusion of a week-long inquest into the death of Michael Watkins (60), who died in August 2021, relief coroner Sarah Whitby highlighted areas which in her opinion contributed significantly to his death.
Mr Watkins, the owner of a local gardening business with a long history of chronic schizophrenia, died from acute cardiac failure which followed neuroleptic malignant syndrome – a rare and life-threatening reaction to anti-psychotic drugs characterised by fever, muscle rigidity, and altered mental status.
On the first day of the inquest, the relief coroner was told that Mr Watkins had been prescribed 16 times the recommended drug dose.
A psychiatrist later told the inquest that Mr Watkins had been discharged from the General Hospital a few weeks before his death when he was "obviously not well enough".
This morning, Mrs Whitby said she considered it neglectful that Mr Watkins was not transferred from Cedar Ward at St Saviour's to Jersey General Hospital during the week ending Friday 13 August, when blood tests showed a reaction to the anti-psychotic drug Clozapine administered at the start of the week.
Pictured: Mr Watkins had previously been admitted to the General Hospital in July.
The second factor mentioned by Mrs Whitby related to a blood test taken at 1pm on Saturday 14 August. The results of this test had been available at 8pm that day, but were not accessed until Monday morning.
Mrs Whitby said that Mr Watkins had recovered after treatment in the acute setting of the General Hospital during July, and may well have done so again had his transfer from Cedar Ward occurred earlier.
The transfer did not take place until late morning on Monday, after he suffered the cardiac arrest from which he died, the inquest had heard.
Action taken by the Health Department to improve its protocols following the incident was acknowledged by Mrs Whitby, who said she did not consider it necessary to make further recommendations in this regard.
Speaking at the inquest yesterday, Mr Watkins' son Luke said that the days leading up to his father’s death were “torture”.
In a statement read to the relief coroner, he said that he felt "left in the dark while I watched my dad deteriorate".
Were the same situation to arise today, Mental Health and Adult Social Care Executive Director Andy Weir said that there was a care co-ordinator in place to provide additional support to patients and their family, and more joined-up working between those treating physical conditions in the acute setting of the General Hospital, and mental health patients on the St Saviour's site.
Pictured: Executive Director of Mental Health and Adult Social Care, Andy Weir.
Luke Watkins said he had received an apology from the Health Department maintaining that the errors had been addressed, but that it was "shameful that it took my dad's death to bring about procedures that should already have been in place."
This morning, the relief coroner concluded: "Mr Watkins died of natural causes, contributed to by neglect."
Hospital patient "obviously not well enough" for discharge before death
"Prescribing error" saw Hospital patient given 16 times drug dose
Comments
Comments on this story express the views of the commentator only, not Bailiwick Publishing. We are unable to guarantee the accuracy of any of those comments.