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93 Year Old Widow, Suffering From Dementia Dies After the Ambulance Dropped Her at a Wrong Address

Mrs. Purnell, who was ailing with chronic lymphatic leukemia and dementia, was a regular with a day unit at Barry Hospital in South Wales, especially run for elderly and mentally decrepit clients.

Mrs. Purnell, who was ailing with chronic lymphatic leukemia and dementia, was a regular with a day unit at Barry Hospital in South Wales, especially run for elderly and mentally decrepit clients. An ambulance team was in charge of picking her up at the close of the day and drop her at the residence.

On August 20th 2003, the ambulance, instead of taking her home in Penarth, dropped her at the door of an empty house of another patient, after a key was discovered under the doormat.

The ambulance service and an NHS Trust, admitted to being guilty of not enabling proper care to a 93 year old widow, who died after she was dropped off at the wrong house. Cardiff and Vale NHS Trust and the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust each pleaded guilty to a breach of the Health and Safety at Work Act and were fined a total of £27,500 today.

According to the Ambulance Service, this mistake occurred after a new crew had taken over the operation of the ambulance on that particular day, and apparently did not possess the right address of their client.


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