Family decides against calling carer to give evidence at inquest into south Shropshire woman's death
A coroner has concluded that a south Shropshire woman died as the result of an accident after she fell at home.
The family of Susan Ursula Britten, aged 77, of Whitton, near Ludlow, decided not to ask the coroner to call their mother's live-in carer to give evidence after being told they could lodge a complaint with the care company.
Wolverhampton-born Mrs Britten, a retired NHS practice manager, suffered a fall in the downstairs area of her 16th Century home on February 18. The coroner heard evidence that her carer had been behind her when she fell on to her right knee as she was moving on her walking frame to a recliner chair where she was going to do her hair for her.
The family of Mrs Britten told senior Shropshire and Telford coroner John Ellery that they wondered why an ambulance had not been called. But the carer had made a statement under oath that Mrs Britten had told her not to call an ambulance on two occasions, and calling her as a witness was not likely to be told anything else.
Mr Ellery said that Mrs Britten had the capacity to make her own decision.
An ambulance was called on February 20 and Mrs Britten was conveyed to Worcester Royal Hospital, where she sadly died on February 27. Mr Ellery had taken jurisdiction for the inquest and held it at Shirehall, in Shrewsbury, on Tuesday.
Mr Ellery told the family that the inquest could not apportion blame but he could adjourn proceedings to allow the carer to be called to give her side of the story, if the family wished. But he did not believe she would say anything different to the account already provided to him.
"This cannot be a complaints procedure," said Mr Ellery. "You can raise complaints with the company."
The inquest was told that Mrs Britten had suffered a head injury from the fall. The cause of death was traumatic subdural haematoma, a collection of blood in the brain.
He concluded that the cause of her death was accidental.
