Second child death prompts inquiry into Trafford care home Dan Box

BBC News Published duration 20 December 2018

media caption Trafford care home death boy was 'ray of sunshine'

A coroner is investigating the death of a teenager in a care home in Greater Manchester, a year after a four-year-old girl died at the same facility.

In April, another coroner published a formal report into EAM House in Partington saying that "action should be taken to prevent future deaths".

Nurses and carers "lacked the ability to act", it said. Health inspectors also found the home to be "unsafe".

EAM Care Group founder Liz Marland said it would "co-operate fully".

Rochdale teenager Jordan-Lee Fitton had been taken into care and was living at EAM House when he was admitted to the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital with a chest infection in August 2017. The 17-year-old died a short time later.

At the time, his parents David and Lisa-Louise Fitton said they were unaware that Lea Louise Hunsley, four, had died a year earlier after being admitted to hospital from the same home.

'Very angry'

Manchester North coroner, Lisa Hashmi, published a formal report, finding nurses and carers at EAM House had failed to read care records and "lack the ability to identify, recognise and act".

"There is a risk that future deaths will occur unless action is taken," the report said.

image copyright Family handout image caption Jordan-Lee Fitton at EAM House, in the last photograph of him taken before his death

David Fitton said he and his wife did not know about this until a public hearing into their son's death in November.

"We're both very angry. Very, very angry," he told the BBC. "It was a shock when we heard about it in the courtroom.

"Why two deaths in the same place? It shouldn't have been allowed to happen again," he said.

Mrs Fitton, from Rochdale, said her son had a complex developmental disability that caused him to have frequent seizures. He needed full-time care.

"He was a right little character," she said.

"He was a happy boy when he was at home. That seemed to slip slightly when he was in care."

image copyright Courts and Tribunals Judiciary image caption The Manchester North coroner warned EAM House in April 2018 that "action should be taken to prevent future deaths"

During the pre-inquest public hearing into Jordan-Lee's death, Manchester coroner Angharad Davies said she would be investigating a number of issues. These include:

Staff training at EAM House

The administration of oxygen to him

Concerns about a delay in his hospital admission

The coroner will also consider Ms Hashmi's Report to Prevent Future Deaths issued following Lea's death in July 2016.

Such reports are sent to the chief coroner of England and Wales when a coroner believes that action should be taken.

Lea, who had profound cerebral palsy, was admitted to Wythenshawe Hospital from EAM House, where she had been receiving respite care.

She died hours later due to complications from previous surgery.

The coroner's report found "opportunities to assess, escalate and intervene were missed" when Lea became ill.

"Neglect more than minimally contributed to the deceased's death", it concluded.

Lea's grandfather Ian Hunsley, from Unsworth, told the Bury Times that Lea "was an extremely happy child, I don't think she even knew she had a disability.

"She loved playing silly games and we adored her ... she really was beautiful," he said.

image caption David and Lisa-Louise Fitton say they still do not understand the circumstances that led to their son's death

Two months after Lea's death, a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection found EAM House provided a "caring" service but there were breaches of the legislation around staff recruitment and disease risk assessment.

Another inspection of the home following Jordan-Lee's death found further breaches, and concluded "the service was not safe".

"Effective systems were not in place to ensure risks to people's safety and welfare were consistently assessed, monitored and managed," the CQC found.

Inspectors who visited the home in June said the service had improved, and gave it a "good" rating overall, but said "we were not sufficiently assured appropriate measures were in place to keep people safe from harm".

image copyright Family handout image caption Jordan-Lee Fitton, pictured with his mother Lisa-Louise, in one of the many photos of him on display in his parents' house

Mrs Marland, the founder of EAM Care Group, which runs EAM House, said the two deaths were "under different circumstances".

Following Lea's death "we have co-operated and worked with CQC to ensure that are staff are experienced and well trained; we have also revised our operating procedures so that families can leave their loved one knowing that the care we provide is safe", she said.

In a written response to the coroner , the EAM Care Group said "we ... have put into place what we feel would prevent a future death".

Mrs Marland declined to comment on the death of Jordan-Lee before the inquest, which is expected to take place next year.

A Rochdale Council spokesman said: "This is a complex case involving a child with profound needs who required a high level of care.