A CORONER has ruled out claims the care an elderly man received after leaving hospital led to his death.

John Langdell, 86, died earlier this year from pneumonia just weeks after he left hospital having suffered a fractured pelvis when he fell trying to avoid a cyclist.

Worcestershire’s senior coroner David Reid gave a verdict that Mr Langdell died from natural causes aged 86 at Worcestershire Royal Hospital on January 11. The cause of death was given as pneumonia with frailty, heart failure and kidney disease contributory factors.

Mr Langdell’s son Ian and the rest of his family had raised concerns about the care provided after he returned home from hospital, as they had been assured that carers would be visiting at least four times a day because of his frailty.

The coroner ruled out that Mr Langdell’s death had come from a lack of care and said he was satisfied that the 86-year-old had been assessed properly at home after leaving hospital in December last year.

At the inquest at Worcestershire Coroner’s Court in Stourport on June 8, Mr Langdell was described as able to live alone and look after himself before he fractured his pelvis on November 12 last year after falling in an attempt to avoid a cyclist, leaving him in hospital for more than a month.

He was later moved out of hospital to Worcester City Inpatient Unit before moving back home to Droitwich where he was assessed by occupational therapists from Worcestershire County Council.

The corner said he “had no doubt” that discussions had been held at the hospital and the family had been told by somebody that he might need four visits a day but said the decision would have always been made by the county council and not the NHS.

Rhian Hill, from the ‘reablement team’ at Worcestershire County Council which deals with home care, told the inquest she ‘wasn’t very clear’ what assessment had been carried out on Mr Langdell but it focused on him needing help in the morning and in the evenings, and getting in and out of bed, and the council knew he would be getting deliveries of ready meals.

The coroner said he ‘could find no reason’ to suggest the assessment had not considered whether Mr Langdell would be fed or could feed himself.

Two carers had recorded that Mr Langdell, who had fallen over twice on his first day back at home, would need four visits a day from carers because he was unsteady on his feet and would struggle to feed himself.

A carer also noted that he was struggling to use his commode and get up from a chair.

He was visited again by an occupational therapist who made adjustments to the home including raising chairs and installing a bed pull, but the twice-daily visits from carers were not doubled.

Mr Langdell, a Birmingham-born retired maintenance fitter who had been living at Lullowfield House in The Holloway, Droitwich, was then back in hospital on New Year’s Eve where he would remain until he died on January 11.