An inquest heard that Margaret Eluned Roberts was told she should have been given a cup with a handle but staff said they didnt know they were to do something different
Margaret Eluned Roberts, 99, (left) with her daughter Linda Pritchard(Image: Linda Pritchard)
A 99-year-old woman tragically died after being scalded by a cup of tea she was drinking, an inquest has heard. Margaret Eluned Roberts, who was registered blind and lived in a nursing home in north Wales, suffered burns when the hot black tea spilled onto her.
The inquest revealed that the burn contributed to Mrs Roberts developing a chest infection. However, the senior coroner concluded that the pensioner’s death, which occurred about five weeks after the burn, was accidental.
Kate Robertson, the senior coroner for north west Wales, determined that she died from pneumonia and cellulitis secondary to a burn, with old age, asthma and ischaemic heart disease as contributing factors.
Sarah Thomas, a healthcare assistant at Glan Rhos nursing home in Brynsiencyn, testified that Mrs Roberts had requested a cup of black tea. She gave it to her in a plastic, two-handled beaker on September 22 last year.
The blind 99-year-old was hospitalised with severe burns after the incident(Image: Ian Cooper/North Wales Live)
Despite knowing that Mrs Roberts was registered blind, Ms Thomas stated that she was “very independent” and “wanted to drink the cup of tea herself”. After watching Mrs Roberts sip the tea through a straw in the spout, Ms Thomas moved away, reports Wales Online.
The inquest heard that Mrs Roberts then accidentally spilled the tea on herself around 7pm. Despite this, Ms Thomas claimed she didn’t hear Mrs Roberts “scream”.
Jo Reavey, a nurse and witness, stated that she heard Mrs Roberts, known as Eluned, “shouting in an urgent tone”. She described finding her “distraught with her arms raised. The beaker was upside down and there was black tea on her trousers”.
The wound began to blister, and staff applied cold towels to it, she explained. In her statement, Linda Pritchard, Mrs Roberts’ daughter, said she received a phone call about the incident. She questioned, “why did they give a blind lady hot black tea?”.
An ambulance was summoned at 7.51pm and arrived at Glan Rhos nursing home approximately two hours later, around 10pm.
The 99-year-old care home resident was transported to Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor(Image: Daily Post Wales)
Mrs Roberts was transported to Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor, where the burn was initially classified as covering 8% of her body weight, but after the redness subsided, it was reclassified as 4%. This is below the 10% threshold required for admission to a burns unit.
At Ysbyty Gwynedd, the blisters were lanced, the wound dressed, and she was discharged. Mrs Roberts was returned to Glan Rhos but developed respiratory issues.
On October 7, her daughter Mrs Pritchard requested her readmission to Ysbyty Gwynedd. Dr Abdul Azu, a consultant physician, informed the inquest that her condition was not improving.
Mrs Roberts passed away in hospital on October 28, roughly five weeks after the scalding incident. When questioned by Mrs Pritchard, Dr Azu confirmed her mother had developed a chest infection.
He added: “Without a doubt the burn has contributed to her (Mrs Roberts) catching the chest infection because she was not moving about.
“She was lying in bed. The scalding was a factor in her declining health,” he concluded.
The coroner, Mrs Robertson, stated that Mrs Roberts passed away on October 28 “as a result of the medical conditions which were precipitated by the burn injury sustained on her leg.”
She described the spillage as “unintended and accidental” and ruled the cause of death of Mrs Roberts, a former environmental protection poultry meat inspector, as an accident.
Mrs Robertson said to Mrs Pritchard: “Mam wanted to reach 100 years old. It would have been such a significant milestone for her and for you.”
She extended her deepest condolences, adding: “I hope there are fond memories you can rely upon when the time comes.”