THE family of a 92-year-old woman who sadly died following a fall in a hospital were unhappy at the conclusion of an inquest into her death - after the coroner ruled there were no gross failures in her care.

Margaret Thompson died at Furness General Hospital on December 22, 2019 after suffering with hospital induced pneumonia, which was accelerated by her congested heart failure and lack of mobility due to a fractured hip, the court heard.

Cockermouth Coroner’s Court heard that the Minnesota, USA-born great-grandmother had fallen and fractured the neck of her femur (commonly known as a hip fracture) during her stay at Abbey View in Furness General Hospital.

The retired dinner lady had been admitted to A&E with pain in her right ankle, which was later diagnosed as osteoarthritis, then was transferred to Abbey View for rehabilitation.

Coroner Craig Smith found in his conclusion that following her admission to the hospital on October 23, 2019 there were shortcomings in her care in regard to blood pressure checks, prescriptions, and fall assessments, but these shortcomings did not cause the fall.

He said: “I understand the concern from the family and why those questions have been raised today, but I am not satisfied that this fits as gross failure.

“I am satisfied that procedures are being put in place to correct the shortcomings that occurred. I do not feel a report to prevent a future death is triggered.”

The coroner went on to accept the cause of death given by the doctors at Furness General which was hospital acquired pneumonia which was accelerated by congest heart failure. The coroner also added an additional cause, her fractured hip, and that she had a number of medical conditions a the time of her admission.

Gross failure or negligence is defined as a deliberate and reckless disregard for the safety and reasonable treatment of others.

In response to this Nicholas Thompson, Mrs Thompson’s son, disputed the findings.

He said: “I am very unhappy about this decision. You have failed a multitude of people today.You have had a bad day at the office Mr Smith.”

The family were present at the inquest in Cockermouth and believed there was cause for concern over the care their mother received during her time at FGH. They believed that the evidence of negligence was “overwhelming”.

During the hearing, Linda Speak, clinical services manager at Abbey View, was questioned about the fall.

She said: “There were possibly no nurses in line of sight due to them carrying out their duties on the ward. Steps have been taken to procedures going forward and there has been changes.

“The fall was recorded at 8.50pm when she was found lying on the floor.

“The report says she said she was going to the toilet but there was nothing to say how long she had been there.

In his summary, coroner Craig Smith found that Mrs Thompson had slipped in her own urine, which was on the floor due to the self removal of her catheter.

This fall is what lead to her fracturing her hip, and ultimately worsened her mobility, leading to hospital acquired pneumonia.

This fall did occur after Mrs Thompson’s daughter Kathleen Inglis had told staff that she was quite unsettled and that they should stay with her until she was settled.

In a statement about her mother, she said: “My mother was born in Minnesota USA and her last occupation was as a dinner lady. She is divorced with three children. She was a talented cook and seamstress and loved music. Her major love of life was her children, grand children, and great grandchildren.”

Dr Shahedal Bari, medical director at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay Trust, said: “The trust expresses its sincere condolences to the family of Margaret Kathleen Thompson and is aware that the family of the deceased is unhappy with the conclusion reached by the coroner. The trust will ensure any learning about care from the events is addressed within the organisation.”