An inquest will examine the circumstances surrounding the death of Viola Clarke, who died aged 89, days after a carer at her retirement village accidentally administered to her potent medication prescribed to someone else. The 20-year-old carer at Goodwin Village in Ainslie told the court she woke Ms Clarke to give her medicine but did not notice it was the wrong person, because when greeted by name the woman had not responded. She realised her mistake almost immediately, when seeing the next resident whose medication it was. Although an ambulance was called that night, Ms Clarke appeared well and was not taken to hospital. The next day she grew increasingly drowsy and another ambulance took her to Calvary Hospital, where she died on February 20 from aspiration pneumonia. Counsel assisting the coroner, Sarah Baker-Goldsmith, said a doctor at the hospital had referred the case to the coroner. Ms Clarke was a new admission to the high-level care facility on February 9, 2016. At about 9pm that night the carer administered 150mg of Lyrica and two tablets of Targin 10/5, which each contain 10mg of oxycodone and 5mg of the antidote naloxone. Lyrica is an anticonvulsant with potent sedating effects, while oxycodone is a highly addictive opiate that also causes sedation and respiratory depression. A medical expert, Dr Vanita Parekh, told the inquest Ms Clarke was opioid naive, and so the effect of the drug would have been profound – but also because the drug was slow-acting, any effects would not have been immediately obvious. The dose of Lyrica too had been high for a drug in which dosage is normally gradually increased, she said. The carer who administered the wrong dose also gave evidence, at one point turning to Ms Clarke’s family to apologise for what happened. The hearing is listed for three days.
April 30, 2019
Nambucca Vocational College saw six trainees complete their aged care qualification recently. The graduation ceremony was held at the BlueGum Function Centre, Short St, Macksville on April 16. The graduates achieved a CHC33015 Certificate III in Individual Support (Ageing) under a formal Traineeship subsidised by the NSW Government.
April 30, 2019
Safe Places Community Services Limited is to face a s.394 (Application for unfair dismissal remedy) before the Fair Work Commissioner Spencer in his Brisbane chambers (Campus).
April 30, 2019
The Department of Human Services is facing a s.372 (Application to deal with other contravention disputes) today in front of Fair Work Deputy President Colman in his Melbourne chambers (Budimlic).
April 30, 2019
Takeover target Automotive Holdings Group has appointed Richard England as chairman to fill a position that had been vacant for a year after the death of the previous chairman. AHG’s Mr England, who is a director of waste management group Bingo Industries and aged care group Japara Health, is also chairman of ASX-listed QANTM Intellectual Property.
April 30, 2019
An aged care worker who finished a night shift at the Holy Spirit Dubbo facility discovered her car window was smashed and the glove box had been rummaged through in the early hours of April 18.
April 30, 2019
Married At First Sight’s Susie has quit her job as a registered aged care nurse to embark on a new career as a cosmetic nurse.
April 30, 2019
A nurse has been struck in the face with a spanner in Aurukun, as violence against health workers threatens to spiral out of control in the Cape York community. Aurukun Shire Council has called an emergency town meeting on Wednesday with the Torres and Cape Hospital and Health Service, after the alleged violent assault against a female nurse from the Aurukun Primary Health Care Centre occurred on Tuesday about 12pm. Police have arrested a 17-year-old boy and charged him with assault occasioning bodily harm, after he allegedly threw a spanner through the window of a vehicle the nurse was driving. The spanner smashed the window, before hitting the woman in the face. It is understood the nurse suffered facial injuries, including losing some teeth. The boy is expected to appear in the Children’s Court at a later date. TCHHS nursing and midwifery executive director Kim Veiwasenavanua said the nurse had been transferred out of Aurukun. “The nurse is a regular relieving nurse at Aurukun and is no stranger to the community,” she said.
