Care home’s medication riddle

CONCERNS have been raised after an elderly woman who had high levels of medication in her body died at an Oldham care home.

Elizabeth Murfin (91) died at Treelands Nursing Home in Fitton Hill in September 2009.

She had moved there in August 2009 after suffering a stroke. At the time, Treelands was run by Southern Cross, which ceased trading this October.

On the first of a five-day inquest at Oldham Magistrates’ Court, the hearing yesterday was told how Mrs Murfin fell from her wheelchair and hit her head on September 23.

Her daughter Cynthia Davenport said was told by staff on the afternoon of her death that she was not taking her medication. After leaving at 5pm, Mrs Davenport said staff called her at 6pm to say they had phoned for a doctor because she had not eaten anything all day and was refusing her medication. Mrs Davenport called back an hour later and was told Mrs Murfin was not breathing.

Home office pathologist Dr Phillip Lumb said said Mr Murfin had a toxic level of the painkiller fentanyl in her blood, and gave the cause of death as fentanyl toxicity and pneumonia, with heart disease and her other medical problems all contributory factors.

He couldn’t say for certain, he added, why the fentanyl level was so high — whether she had been given too much or the dose was correct and her body couldn’t process it correctly. He explained the fentanyl would have accelerated her death.

Toxicologist Sara Jo Tarrant said fentanyl should only be prescribed to someone who has already been given strong opiate drugs such as morphine — but Mrs Murfin had not been prescribed such drugs.

Geoffrey Edwards, former operations manager at Southern Cross from 2005 until 2009, said a series of measures had been introduced following Mrs Murfin’s death including the suspension of three staff, emergency first-aid training for all qualified nurses, review of the nursing home’s head-injury policy and suspension of patient admissions.

The inquest continues