Prevention of Future Deaths reports · 2016

Thomas Jordan

Regulation 28 report to prevent future deaths, reference 2016-0287, written 10 Aug 2016. A coroner writes one of these when an inquest reveals a risk that could cause further deaths unless something changes.

Date of report10 Aug 2016
Reference2016-0287
DeceasedThomas Jordan
CoronerDavid Hinchliff
Coroner areaWest Yorkshire (East)
CategoryHospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths · State Custody related deaths
Organisation namedLeeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
Sourcejudiciary.uk record · original PDF
Responses published1

The report

Text recovered by OCR from a scanned PDF. OCR is imperfect: check anything you rely on against the source PDF. Reproduced verbatim, including the scan's own layout.

ANNEX A

REGULATION 28: REPORT TO PREVENT FUTURE DEATHS (1)

NOTE: This form is to be used after an inquest.

REGULATION 28 REPORT TO PREVENT FUTURE DEATHS
THIS REPORT IS BEING SENT TO:

1. The Head of Healthcare at Her Majesty’s Prison, Leeds.
2. The Medical Director of the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

1 | CORONER

| am David Hinchliff, Senior Coroner, for the coroner area of West Yorkshire (East)

2 | CORONER’S LEGAL POWERS

| make this report under paragraph 7, Schedule 5, of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009
and reguiations 28 and 29 of the Coroners (investigations) Regulations 2013.

3. | INVESTIGATION and INQUEST

On 7" August 2015 | commenced an Investigation into the death of Thomas George
Jordan, aged 80 years. The Investigation concluded at the end of the Inquest on 28"
June 2016. The Conclusion of the Inquest was:-

“Thomas George Jordan was a remand Prisoner at Her Majesty's Prison, Leeds who
suffered with a number of chronic medical conditions as befits his age. He became
unwell and was admitted to St James’s University Hospital, Leeds where his death was
confirmed at 1955 hours on 6” August 2015”

The cause of death being:-

1(a) Ischaemic Heart Disease
(b) Coronary Artery Atheroma

2 Diabetes Mellitus.

Conclusion : Natural Causes

4 | CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE DEATH

e Thomas George Jordan was remanded in custody at Her Majesty's Prison,
Leeds in April 2015 after breaching his bail conditions.

e On the morning of 6” August 2015 his heart rate was fast and irregular. He was
therefore admitted to Leeds General Infirmary with central chest pain,
breathlessness, fast atrial fibrillation and low blood pressure. He described
having felt unwell for the previous three weeks.

e Clinically he was dehydrated and showed signs of kidney impairment and
severe metabolic acidosis. He was reviewed by a Cardiologist and an
ultrasound scan of his heart was performed. Later he was transferred to St
James’s University Hospital, Leeds, where his condition deteriorated.

e He went into cardiac arrest and despite cardiopulmonary resuscitation his death
was confirmed at 1955 hours on 6" August 2015.

CORONER’S CONCERNS

During the course of the Inquest the evidence revealed matters giving rise to concern. tn
my opinion there is a risk that future deaths will occur unless action is taken. In the
circumstances it is my statutory duty to report to you.

The MATTERS OF CONCERN are as follows. —

(1) Healthcare staff at the Prison continued to administer the drug Digoxin for several
days after the Clinicians at the Hospital had requested that it be discontinued.

(2) There had been a breakdown in communication between the Hospital and the
Prison when Mr Jordan was discharged.

(3) The problem appears to be at the Prison as there was discharge correspondence
sent back with him, but this was not immediately available to Healthcare staff and was
not reviewed by them.

(4) This was an obvious drug error, but there is no evidence to conclude that this has
materially caused or contributed to Mr Jordan’s death.

(5) | require that the Head of Healthcare at Her Majesty’s Prison liaise with the Medical
Director of the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust to discuss the feasibility of
discharge summaries in respect of Prisons being sent to the Prison’s Healthcare facility
electronically to ensure that any directions and advice as to future care are received
promptly and can take immediate effect.

(6) Should there be issues of patient confidentiality, this can be addressed by the Prison
having a secure email facility dedicated for this purpose.

ACTION SHOULD BE TAKEN

In my opinion action should be taken to prevent future deaths and | believe you AND/OR
your organisation have the power to take such action.

YOUR RESPONSE

You are under a duty to respond to this report within 56 days of the date of this report,
namely by 29" September 2016. |, the Coroner, may extend the period.

Your response must contain details of action taken or proposed to be taken, setting out
the timetable for action. Otherwise you must explain why no action is proposed.

COPIES and PUBLICATION

| have sent a copy of my report to the Chief Coroner and to the following Interested
Persons, the Head of the Prison Service, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman and
the Chief Inspector of Prisons.

| am also under a duty to send the Chief Coroner a copy of your response.

The Chief Coroner may publish either or both in a complete or redacted or summary
form. He may send a copy of this report to any person who he believes may find it useful
or of interest. You may make representations to me, the coroner, at the time of your
response, about the release or the publication of your response by the Chief Coroner.

10” August 2016

DAVID HINCHLIFF
Senior Coroner
West Yorkshire (Eastern)

Responses

1 response published against this report on judiciary.uk. A response is a body's written reply to the coroner's concerns; publication is at the discretion of the Chief Coroner's office, so an absent response does not mean nobody replied.

Response from Care UK (PDF)
care E3 

Care UK
Hawker House 
5-6 Napier Court 
Napier Road 
Reading 
Berkshire  RG1  8BW 

www.careuk.com 

David Hinchliff, Senior Coroner 
West Yorkshire (Eastern) 
Coroner's Office and Court 
71  Northgate 
Wakefield 
WF1  3BS 

28 September 2016 

Dear Mr Hinchliff, 

Inquest touching the death of Thomas George Jordan - Regulation 28 Report 

I write in  response to your Regulation 28 Report dated 10 August 2016.  I have also had sight 
of the letter from  Rachel Howitt,  Incident and Assurance Manager, Leeds Community 
Healthcare dated 4 August and your letter of 10 August in response. 

Further to that correspondence, the Head of Healthcare at HMP Leeds has discussed the 
above with the Clinical Director for Urgent Care at Leeds Teaching Hospital.  The Director has 
agreed that an electronic summary can be issued with all patients who transfer back to HMP 
Leeds following discharge from a hospital admission.  The Hospital currently send an 
electronic summary to the registered GP and the process for sending the same to the prison 
can be incorporated within their system.  IT personnel from  both the Hospital and Care UK will 
create a pathway that ensures all summaries are appropriately shared.  In the meantime, the 
Director will ensure that written summaries are provided in a sealed envelope for all hospital 
discharges and these will accompany the patient back to the prison. 

I trust that this addresses your concern but please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of 
any further assistance. 

Yours sincerely 

Company Solicitor 
Care UK 

Consultant in  Emergency Medicine 
Clinical Director, Acute Medicine 
Chair, ATLS UK 
Emergency Department 
St James's University Hospital 
Beckett Street 
Leeds LS9 7TF 

Care UK Limited. Registered in England No 1668247 
Registered Office: Connaught House, 850 The Crescent. Colchester Business Park,  Colchester, Essex C04 9QB

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