Surrey
Coroner Area
Reports: 189
Earliest: Aug 2013
Latest: 10 Apr 2026
77% response rate (above 63% average).
Kirsty Walker
All Responded
2018-0396
19 Dec 2018
Department of Health and Social Care
NHS England
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Prolonged delays (months) in transferring prisoners requiring secure hospital care under the Mental Health Act, far exceeding recommended timeframes, are caused by a severe shortage of available beds.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
NHS England is undertaking demand and capacity reviews for adult secure services, aiming to optimise capacity and throughput, with results expected in 2019/20. They are also revising prison transfer and remission guidance, and expect this to make the transfer/remission process more efficient. NHS England is undertaking service reviews across all adult high, medium and low secure services and reviewing the current prison transfer and remission guidance. A new service specification for an integrated mental health service for prisons in England is being implemented.
Henry Heselton
All Responded
2018-0152
18 May 2018
Southern Health NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Electronic mental health records were unclear, making vital history hard to access, and there was a critical lack of communication between mental health teams and GPs.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust revised the Risk Summary Section in its electronic patient record in January 2017, requiring all staff to input risk information according to national guidance. The Acute Mental Health Team and Community Mental Health Team Standard Operating Procedures have been reviewed, and team managers have been instructed to ensure that staff communicate with GPs after triaging referrals and to regularly monitor that it is occurring.
Stephen Tidey
All Responded
2018-0140
8 May 2018
Surrey & Borders Partnership NHS Trust
Surrey County Council
Surrey Police
Police related deaths
State Custody related deaths
Suicide (from 2015)
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Inadequate recording of changes in suicide risk assessments and significant delays by mental health services in acting on high-risk MASH referrals following a critical trigger event.
Noted
(AI summary)
The Trust has already implemented a standardised log for Single Combined Assessment of Risk Forms (SCARF) across Community Mental Health Recovery Service (CMHRS) teams. They have also devised a new checking system between the MASH and the CMHRS teams and set up an automated email reply from the Mental Health/Drug & Alcohol inbox within the MASH. Surrey Police explains how Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) reports are processed upon receipt and graded for risk. They state that they do not monitor partner agency responses and suggest forwarding one question to SABP and Adult Social Care.
Margaret Silver
All Responded
2018-0002
3 Jan 2018
Ashford and St Peter’s Hospital NHS Tru…
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Contradictory information in discharge summaries led to the discontinuation of life-saving medication, which clinicians failed to identify despite patient contact. Additionally, occupational therapy recommendations for support were not ensured post-discharge.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The trust is amending the discharge letter template to improve clarity regarding medications. They also intend to introduce electronic prescribing in 2019, and are implementing a 'Red Bag' process to improve communication between providers.
Ernest Smith
All Responded
2017-0459
14 Dec 2017
Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The system for managing GP correspondence and medication review requests remains flawed. There is also no clear system to update GPs when patients are not under the medical team, risking unrecognised disengagement.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
The Adult Mental Health Division has created an action plan to address the coroner's concerns, which will be monitored at monthly Quality Assurance Group meetings and shared with other service divisions.
Hayley Sheehan
All Responded
2017-0324
1 Aug 2017
Moat Surgery
Community health care and emergency services related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The repeat prescription procedure is unsafe as it relies on manual flagging of early requests, with software unable to automatically identify them. More safeguards are needed, including software adaptation.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Moat House Surgery requested changes to the EMIS prescribing process to flag early prescription requests and developed a pop-up box alerting staff to prescriptions issued less than 30 days prior. They also implemented a 'Controlled Drug Monitoring' template and process for medication reviews.
Ralph Brazier
All Responded
2017-0090
20 Mar 2017
Surrey County Council
Road (Highways Safety) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Insufficient consideration of increasing cyclist numbers on highways leads to inadequate defect categorisation, prioritising cycle lanes over highways where many cyclists also face significant risks.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
Surrey County Council is preparing additional training for highway inspectors in relation to risk assessment for vulnerable users, including cyclists, to be completed by the end of August 2017.
Peter Keep
All Responded
2016-0362
14 Oct 2016
Frimley Park Hospital
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The hospital lacked a clear sedation policy for cardiac procedures, leading to inconsistent drug use, inadequate staff training on anxiolytics, and no action plan for patient intolerance or airway emergencies.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
Frimley Health NHS Trust relaunched the Trust Safe Sedation Committee and is reviewing and revising the Trustwide Guideline for Intravenous Conscious Sedation of Adults.
Rebecca Gilbank
All Responded
2016-wp25329
26 Jul 2016
Independence Homes Limited
Care Home Health related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
A check was missed because staff were busy with other service users, and staff lacked knowledge about how to obtain an outside telephone line to call emergency services; the coroner suggests providing sufficient staffing resources and clear guidance on obtaining an outside line.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The organisation has changed its telephone system so staff no longer need to dial 9 for an outside line when calling emergency services. This change was communicated to staff verbally, by email, and in the Clareville Lodge Communications Book.
Christopher Sears
All Responded
2016-0212
25 May 2016
Department for Education
Department for Transport
Greenshades Coach Travel Ltd
+2 more
Child Death (from 2015)
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Bus drivers transporting students are not required to have Basic Life Support training or emergency protocols, and BLS is not routinely taught in secondary education.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
The DfE intends to consult on a revised version of guidance on school transport in the autumn and will consider whether they should further clarify the description of the training that drivers and escorts should receive. The DfT will reinforce the importance of basic life support training for drivers through targeted communications and social media, and raise the profile of the issue with bus industry and local authority stakeholders.
John Crittall
All Responded
2016-0187
16 May 2016
BMI Hospitals
Care Quality Commission
General Medical Council
+2 more
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
An acutely unwell patient was admitted to a private hospital lacking HDU/ITU facilities and emergency protocols. Chest drain insertion was performed against guidelines, without appropriate imaging or confirmation of its position, delaying critical haemothorax management.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
The Royal College of Radiologists will make its Fellows and members aware of the British Thoracic Society Pleural Disease Guidelines 2010. Following concerns about admitting acutely unwell patients without HDU/ITU facilities, BMI Mount Alvernia Hospital updated its admission policy to ensure all patients meet admission criteria. They also introduced mandatory training details for consultants and conduct monthly audits of consultant input into medical records.
Ernest Higgs
All Responded
2016-0181
27 Apr 2016
British Medical Association
Care UK
Epsom and St Helier University Hospital…
+3 more
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Confusion arose from unrecorded GP advice in multi-disciplinary notes and unconfirmed telephone advice. Conflicting information between care providers also caused significant delays in diagnostic testing.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
The Trust will include a statement within the newsletter sent to GPs within the Trust's catchment area reminding them of 24-hour access to the Trust's pathology department. They will also be sending a letter to each of their three local CCGs requesting that this information is passed on to all registered care homes in their area. The CCG's Quality Committee has undertaken an in-depth analysis of the issues relating to nursing and residential care home quality, which will lead to changes in the way they commission and assure quality of services. They are at the final stages of developing a nursing home Primary Care Standard, recruiting a specialist dietician and the CHC team will raise concerns should they find poor documentation either from the nursing/residential home andlor poorly documented communication between general practitioner and care home staff. The practice has drafted a policy regarding telephone advice to nursing homes, and will audit responses to nursing home phone requests 6 months after implementation. They are waiting for BMA clarity on multi-disciplinary notes before committing to a stance, but are in agreement with the nursing home regarding contemporaneous notes.
John Watt
All Responded
2016-0124
31 Mar 2016
Surrey Local Highways Services Group Ma…
Road (Highways Safety) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The lack of a safe or controlled pedestrian crossing on the main A25 road in Abinger Hammer village poses a significant risk to locals and visitors, especially families.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
Surrey County Council will request funding for a feasibility study to determine if a pedestrian crossing facility is possible and safe, will inspect and recondition the existing Vehicle Activated Sign and investigate the provision of signs to warn drivers that pedestrians are crossing the A25.
Clifford Crofts
All Responded
2016-0066
22 Feb 2016
Ashford and St Peter’s Hospital Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
A critical post-operative care plan went missing, and nursing staff faced unsuccessful attempts to escalate care for acute pain. Significant delays occurred in obtaining a CT scan.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Trust has made several changes including no longer undertaking feeding enterostomies on Fridays or weekends, implementing the RIG care plan in radiology, making care plans available on the intranet, and producing an online training module for staff.
Adam Withers
All Responded
2016-0059
15 Feb 2016
Department of Health and Social Care
NHS England
Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Psychiatric nursing staff failed to sufficiently record patient observations and interactions, lacking understanding of their importance, and made unlabelled retrospective entries after death, compromising patient assessment and care.
Noted
(AI summary)
The Department of Health states that original paper records should not be destroyed after a patient's death where the death may be subject to investigation. They state that the NHS Records Management Code of Practice is currently under review. The Trust has instigated work to improve the quality of engagement with adult inpatient services using a process of purposeful engagement and revised their Observation Policy to include clearer guidance on recording all clinical interventions. This is a joint strategic statement from NHS Improvement and the CQC about working together to ensure financial rigour while improving quality outcomes for patients. It describes how the two organisations will work together in the future.
Julia Hayward
All Responded
2015-0321
11 Aug 2015
Department of Health and Social Care
Mental Health related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Discharged mental health patients' care plans, especially those involving family obligations, were only verbally agreed and not documented or provided, leading to critical misunderstandings.
Noted
(AI summary)
The response explains existing protocols and guidance related to the Mental Health Act and assessment/discharge procedures, but does not describe any specific action taken or planned in response to the concerns.
Kenneth Williams
All Responded
2015-0135
30 Mar 2015
Epsom and St Helier University Hospital…
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Inadequate review of patient history and imaging before invasive procedures, insufficient respiratory consultant input, and poor communication between medical teams increased risks. Staff also lacked training to access historical imaging.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust has introduced a medical proforma to support clerking of patients and requires patients' medical history and medication to be taken. Mr Williams' case is the focus of some of the trust's current training in the use and insertion of chest drains.
Simon Tree
All Responded
2015-0032
30 Jan 2015
Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foun…
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The unit's new airlock system has security flaws, allowing patients to 'tailgate' visitors and leave, with inadequate monitoring by reception staff.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Trust has recruited a Security Manager, employs an out-of-hours receptionist, transferred administration support to the wards and improved camera coverage in the airlock. The Trust has also introduced cards outlining duration and conditions of leave and included the concerns raised in their Trust-wide action plan.
Susanna Geraty
All Responded
2015-0026
27 Jan 2015
East Surrey Hospital
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Post-operative care failures included inadequate fluid balance monitoring and recording, poor nursing records, failure to recognise an acutely unwell patient, and unaddressed family concerns.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
SASH has introduced mandatory training for newly qualified nurses on fluid balance and has issued a reminder to staff regarding the importance of accurately completing fluid balance charts. A Serious Incident Review Group has been formed to review SI investigations and reports.
Marjorie Ellery
All Responded
2014-0519
26 Nov 2014
Frimley Park Hospital
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Medication was administered to a patient with a known allergy without appropriate senior medical advice, and the consent obtained for this treatment was not informed consent.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Trust now requires registrar or higher authorisation and documented discussion with the patient for medication prescriptions when allergies are known. A new policy on allergy management is being developed and training for nursing staff has been reviewed to include the management of allergies.
Gaenor Moore
All Responded
2014-0512
24 Nov 2014
Dolby Vivisol
Invacare Rehabilitation
Salter Labs
Care Home Health related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Oxygen flow was lost due to an improperly engaged humidifier screw cap, exacerbated by the absence of an alarm on the concentrator and insufficient training regarding equipment setup.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
Dolby Vivisol is liaising with Salter Labs and Invacare to update product instructions regarding humidifier cap engagement, and will update their own training materials and patient instructions accordingly. Proposed amendments will be sent to NHS contract managers for approval. Salter Labs has offered to review Dolby Vivisol's updated literature and will ensure it includes reference to the safety valve. They are waiting for the humidifier to be returned for examination and will provide an updated Vigilance Report to the MHRA. Invacare will update manuals provided to customers with concentrator units to include enhanced guidance on humidifier cap installation, with wording similar to confirming the cap is not cross-threaded. This update will be phased into all manuals within several months, with a technical update sent to customers in Europe.
William Hafele
All Responded
2014-0511
24 Nov 2014
Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foun…
Surrey Police
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Inadequate training and communication between police and hospital staff on missing persons procedures led to critical information omissions, misclassification, and a complete failure to investigate Mr. Hafele's whereabouts.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
Surrey Police are reviewing and updating their Missing Person Policy to align with new ACPO guidelines, including clarifying risk assessment processes and responsibilities, and making information available on officers' MDTs. The TPT briefing training will be modified to ensure consistency with the Surrey Police Missing Person Procedure definition of 'Absent'. The Trust has emphasized the importance of the Missing Persons (MISPER) process and instructed staff to complete Appendix A. A member of the Clinical Assurance team is assigned to ensure compliance with the MISPER agreement.
George Palmer
All Responded
2014-0407
15 Sep 2014
Community Mental Health Recovery Servic…
Other related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Discharge follow-up mechanisms were inadequate for patients transferring areas, leading to a lack of continuity of support, and follow-up letters for non-contact were inappropriate.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Trust reviewed and reinforced procedures for sharing information with new service providers when patients relocate, including requesting GP details and sending discharge notifications. They have also logged the issues in their corporate action plan and will share learning through quarterly events.
Clare Cooper
All Responded
2014-0345
25 Jul 2014
East Surrey Clinical Commissioning Group
Eating Disorder Services for Adults
Royal College of Pathologists
+3 more
Community health care and emergency services related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The report identifies poor GP documentation, a lack of robust assessment of presenting signs and symptoms, and a lack of routine vital sign monitoring. There were also concerns about the recognition, assessment, and management of electrolyte abnormalities.
Noted
(AI summary)
The Royal College of General Practitioners provides information on its role and remit, and references existing guidance and resources related to the concerns raised regarding referral letters and communication with secondary care. The Trust has revised its referral form to improve the quality of information GPs provide, including asking for more detail and highlighting the need to exclude organic causes of weight loss prior to referral to the Eating Disorders Service. The trust has also shared the concern about hospital notes with their medical records team. The Royal College of Psychiatrists agrees with the need for better EDS proformas. They highlight concerns about risk assessment in psychiatry and the need for eating disorder specialists with adequate medical training. The college plans to raise these issues at the next Executive Committee Meeting and will ask for consideration on how best to disseminate robust EDS proformas across the UK health economy. The surgery will ensure all consultations are fully documented in patient notes and proper assessments are conducted. All GPs will complete the BMJ online learning e-module on hyponatraemia. A consultant endocrinologist will give a lunchtime educational meeting at the practice on hyponatraemia and Addison's Disease. All patient referrals will have copies of all investigations attached.
Ryan Boyle
All Responded
2014-0263
9 Jun 2014
Surrey Police
Police related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Police force control lacked adequate training for pursuit operators, an efficient notification system for pursuits, and sufficient staffing on the 'Force desk' to manage incidents effectively.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
Surrey Police updated its pursuit management guidance to align with ACPO guidance, installed a 'Call Supervisor' button in the Force Control Room, and briefed staff that two people must monitor the Force Channel at all times; staff were also instructed to shout to alert supervisors to incidents.