HSE/SE/001/07 25 October 2007

HSE puts out major warning to companies after care home death in Sussex

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has warned care homes across the country that they must stick to the guidance set out by HSE to avoid fatal incidents. 

Sussex-based nursing care home owners, Alan Lucas and Richard Wooton of The Ormsby Centre, pleaded guilty yesterday, to Breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, at Worthing Magistrates Court to a breach of health and safety law and were fined £16,000 each plus £22,560 in total costs.

On 2 November 2005, two care assistants placed 86 year old Bettina East, a resident at The Ormsby Centre into a bath.  The care assistants failed to carry out a number of health and safety checks, including a full temperature check, before lowering her into the bath.  As a subsequence, Mrs East suffered severe scalding to her legs.  She tragically died days later. The scalds were confirmed to be a contributory factor to her death.

Speaking after the Hearing HSE Inspector Maria Strangward said: “This case highlights the serious consequences of not sticking to the guidance set by Health and Safety for residential care homes. 

“There are a number of reasonable measures the care assistants could have taken that would have prevented this tragic incident.  These measures are set out in the Health and Safety guidance for residential care homes, which every care home should have access to.” 

Notes to Editors

Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 states: “It shall be the duty to every employer to conduct his undertaking in such a way as to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons not in his employment who may be affected thereby are not thereby exposed to risks to their health of safety.”

Please see following extract of particular relevance from the publication: Health and Safety in Residential Care Homes. HSG 220 (HSE).ISBN 0 7176 2082 4.

Hazardous Water Temperatures

At water temperatures over 50ºC there is a risk of scalding which rises with increasing temperatures. The risk is increased in care homes as residents are elderly and may be prone to sensory loss. For situations where whole body immersion takes place, such as baths and showers and these are accessible to residents, water temperatures should be controlled to 43ºC. Circulating hot water should be at over 60C, to avoid risks associated with Legionella.
Safe hot water systems include thermostatic mixers with fail-safe devices, single lever mixers or control mechanical mixers with built-in tamperproof hot water limiting devices. Access to areas should be restricted and some residents may require supervision by adequately trained staff.

• Defendants were prosecuted under Regulation 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 for failing to discharge the duty imposed by Section 3(1) of the Act which states: “It shall be the duty of every employer to conduct his undertaking in such a way as to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons not in his employment who may be affected thereby are not thereby exposed to risks to their health or safety.”
• The maximum penalty in the Magistrates Court for a breach of the above Regulations is a fine not exceeding £5,000 per offence.  It is open to the magistrates to commit cases for trial or sentencing in the Crown Court, where the maximum penalty is an unlimited fine.

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Issued on behalf of HSE by Government News Network South East