Disabled man killed by bed hoist

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A disabled man choked to death after becoming trapped in a mechanical hoist which failed as he was using it to get into bed, an inquest has heard.

Michael Powell, 54, who was paralysed in a motorbike crash, became tangled in the hoist at his home in Newport and had no way of calling for help.

The hoist should have been inspected a month before his death on 2008. The council said a review was under way.

The jury at Newport coroner's court returned a verdict of accidental death.

A post-mortem examination showed Mr Powell died from positional asphyxia and the effects of drinking alcohol. He was two-and-a-half times the drink-drive limit.

Mr Powell was trying to lower himself into bed when the hoist failed, either because of a loose connection or when a handheld controller became loose and fell to the floor.

He had no way of calling for help, and was forced to try to pick the controller up himself.

Mr Powell would have been panicking and goodness knows what was going through his mind David Bowen, coroner

Jeremy Ferraira from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said Mr Powell became trapped in the sling while trying to retrieve the controller.

He gave evidence that the controller was in a "poor condition" and fell from the flex attaching it to the system.

He added: "There was a significant risk the hand controller could inadvertently drop to the floor while Mr Powell was in the hoist.

"It's most likely the hoist malfunctioned because the controller was dropped."

Mr Powell's brother Nicholas found the body suspended in the frame when he went to his home the following day after being unable to make contact on the phone.

Coroner David Bowen promised to write to Newport council asking for lone users of similar hoists to be given neck pendants so they could call for help in an emergency.

He said: "Newport Council should carry out an immediate assessment of all disabled patients who have use of hoists such as this without the assistance of carers to ensure they are supplied with some emergency means of summoning help.

"It seems to me that if Mr Powell had one of these emergency buttons he could have summoned help. He had no means of such help at all."

He added: "Mr Powell would have been panicking and goodness knows what was going through his mind."

Stress

The inquest heard Mr Powell, a former carpenter, was left in a wheelchair after a speedway crash in Weymouth in 1975.

He was a "fiercely independent" man who preferred to live alone in a bungalow following his divorce in 2002.

He had track hoists installed in 2000 to help him get in and out of bed after 25 years of moving himself manually put too much stress on his shoulder.

The model he used was supposed to be operated by a carer, the court heard.

In a statement, occupational therapist Sarah Williams said: "Mr Powell refused all offers of care.

"He was very happy with the hoists when they were installed as they allowed him to remain as independent as possible and, most importantly, remain in his own home without carers.

"He was assessed as independent and safe in his ability to use the slings and hoists."

A Newport Council spokeswoman said: "A review is already under way relating to people who live alone and are supplied with equipment such as hoists or bath lifts.

"We will await the coroner's recommendations and consider any further action required."