The inquest examining the death of a man who left Mayo University Hospital in Castlebar and subsequently drowned in a river, returned a verdict of accidental death. Last year, the patient, Patrick Rowland, aged 69 from Lahardane, Ballina, escaped from the hospital where he had been admitted for severe medical issues. Mayo coroner Patrick O’Connor emphasised in his statement at Swinford Courthouse that a hospital isn’t a prison and despite Mr Rowland’s health issues, he was not being held under the Mental Health Act. He further added that hospital staff can only endeavour to convince patients to stay in care.
According to O’Connor, although it may be hard for the Rowland family to comprehend, Patrick Rowland’s departure from the hospital was his personal decision and not bearing his health’s best interest in mind. The inquest previously revealed that Mr Rowland was admitted on January 15th, 2023 with a pneumonia and sepsis diagnosis. He spent 42 hours in a trolley within an emergency department corridor before being shifted to a hospital ward with the assistance of hospital staff and his son, Cormac. After Cormac left his father around 12.40am, he received a call an hour later from Patrick stating that he had left the hospital in his pyjamas and slippers and wished to return home. On arriving in Castlebar, Cormac couldn’t find his father despite a comprehensive search. The search ended two days later after the unfortunate discovery of Patrick Rowland’s body in the Castlebar river.
Mr. O’Connor issued several recommendations towards Mayo University Hospital, Saolta University Health Care Group and the HSE after rendering his judgement. He asserted the importance of abiding by the instructions regarding sepsis and initial warning scores documentation. He called for the immediate provision of training for all the hospital staff on proper management of patients contemplating self-discharge and those with a likelihood of escaping, and that these subjects should be documented as a part of any patient’s medical history.
His recommendations also targeted Mayo County Council, which holds the burden of amenities in the region, concerning a bridge’s railings where Mr. Rowland’s slipper was discovered, and the mapping of a water body’s barrier to be closer to the town preventing a body from being carried beyond the town’s boundaries if a person fell.
Post the announcement, while the Rowland family acknowledged the coroner’s recommendations, they expressed their discontent. Roger Murray, a senior counsel and an attorney stated that the family was mulling over taking legal actions against the HSE on the grounds that they believe if medical and non-medical information had been communicated to the hospital staff during the handover, Mr. Rowland would have avoided the river and the misfortune wouldn’t have occurred.
Cormac Rowland expressed his distress saying his father was someone who trusted the system, and the circumstances of his demise has caused them large amounts of distress. He further noted that Patrick Rowland was not in a sound mental state during that period.