Woman (71) hanged herself in Colne care home

Janet May Waterworth (71) was not diagnosed before moving to the Grange Care Nursing Home in January, 2013, after being discharged from the Royal Blackburn Hospital, the hearing in Burnley was told.

She was found hanged by her shoelaces in her room at the home on March 17th that year.

Mrs Waterworth’s daughter, Mrs Andrea Jackson, said her mother had attempted suicide in the past and when she was being admitted to hospital after a fall, was unco-operative with mental health teams and asked to be allowed to die.

She had gone to the Grange for recuperation after her discharge from hospital with a view to returning home.

Mental health care worker John Yewell, who then worked at the Grange, said he was gravely concerned about Mrs Waterworth at the time of her admission. “I was the only person there with any mental health training. She should not have been there. It was inappropriate,” he said.

Steven Beckett, team leader for the mental health team in Pendle, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley, said Mrs Waterworth had been visited by the team on 15 occasions in the six weeks she was at the Grange.

“Nothing was flagged up about the home not being suitable and no concerns were raised during any of the visits,” he said.

“Her threats to commit suicide were taken seriously but she said there were no plans to carry them out.

“It would seem there has been a breakdown in communications between various administrations.”

Dawn Blackburn, operations manager at the Royal Blackburn Hospital, said Mrs Waterworth’s discharge had been arranged by various bodies. A pre-assessment would have been carried out by the home manager to see if it could cater for Mrs Waterworth.

East Lancashire Coroner Mr Richard Taylor said: “There is a cause for concern for anyone hearing the circumstances but that may be because there were so many people involved in this case.

“It is impossible to say with any degree of certainty that the placement was wrong but I hope the Grange will take on board the responsibilities they have to their staff and the people they look after.”

He reached a conclusion that Mrs Waterworth took her own life.