Hospital sent man to 'certain death', inquest told

ENNIS GENERAL Hospital failed in its duty of care to a 73-year-old Kilrush man and as a result he was sent away to his certain death two years ago, it was claimed yesterday.

The claim was made yesterday by Kilrush woman Muriel Kiely at the inquest into the death of her late partner, Jimmy Grogan, on November 23rd, 2007.

A jury returned a verdict of medical misadventure in the case after hearing that the required oxygen to keep Mr Grogan alive was not available at a Health Service Executive (HSE) community care facility, Regina House, in Kilrush, Co Clare, where he had been transferred to from Ennis General Hospital.

Mr Grogan was a terminally ill patient and had a long history of respiratory illness.

He was admitted to Ennis General Hospital on November 21st, 2007, but the hospital discharged him two days later. Mr Grogan said that he wished to go to Regina House, where he would receive palliative care.

Mr Grogan required 15 litres of oxygen per minute to avoid being critically ill and was receiving that in the ambulance transfer from the hospital to Regina House.

However, at Regina House, there was only capacity for 5 litres of oxygen per minute for patients and Mr Grogan was dead within 15 minutes of arrival after the ambulance had departed.

In her deposition, Ms Kiely said: “I feel that Ennis General Hospital failed in their duty of care to Jimmy because they did not ensure that Regina House had the necessary equipment to meet Jimmy’s oxygen requirements and in this failure he was sent on a 27-mile journey to certain death.”

In her evidence, Ms Kiely said: “Jimmy wasn’t discharged from Ennis General Hospital, he was thrown out and abandoned by the health care professionals we all trusted.”

Ms Kiely said she was waiting outside room 19 at Regina House as Mr Grogan was transferred into the care bed by staff.

She said: “I was waiting outside the door and I heard a howl of anguish from Jimmy with my name. I went in and I knew that something was wrong and Jimmy looked at me in total despair and terror and said ‘no oxygen’.”

Ms Kiely said that Jimmy’s last words were “no oxygen”. She said euthanasia would have been “infinitely more preferable.”

Clinical nurse manager at Regina House, Mary Rose Counihan, said that within a week of the tragedy, the oxygen capacity at the facility had been increased to 15 litres per minute.

Paramedic Theresa Lyons said that there was no protocol in place in relation to when there is a changeover of oxygen for patients and she said that once Mr Grogan was taken in by the staff at Regina House, he was under their care.

In an accompanying recommendation attached to the verdict, the jury stated that in future when patients are being transferred to HSE facilities, there should be greater communication between all parties, including medical personnel and all family members.