Lincolnshire hospital fined more than £100,000 after elderly patient suffered major burns after fall

United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust has been ordered to pay over £100,000 after staff caused a 91-year-old woman significant burns when they pushed her against hot water pipes.

The trust was charged by watchdog the Care Quality Commission (CQC) with failing to provide safe care and treatment after the incident involving Iris Longmate at Lincoln County Hospital in February 2019.

Ms Longmate was found face down on the floor in her room after falling from a commode. During resuscitation she was placed against exposed hot water pipes.

She was transferred to Queens Medical Centre for treatment, where she contracted pneumonia and died on 14 March, 2019.

In pleading guilty to the offence of causing avoidable harm, the trust also acknowledged that other patients on the Greetwell Ward had also been exposed to a significant risk.

The trust was fined £100,000 and ordered to pay £11,034 in costs to the CQC.

Fiona Allinson, CQC’s deputy chief inspector of hospitals, said: "This death is a tragedy. My thoughts are with the family and others grieving for their loss."People have the right to safe care and treatment, so it’s unacceptable that patient safety was not well managed by United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust."Had the trust addressed the issues with the exposed heating pipes before Iris fell, she wouldn’t have suffered such awful burns injuries."The vast majority of people receive good care when they attend hospital, but if we find a provider has put people in its care at risk of harm, we take action to hold it to account and protect people."

ULHT chief executive Andrew Morgan offered an "unreserved apology" to the family.

He said: "We have learned lessons from the incident, and would like to provide reassurance that action has been taken to address the risks from exposed radiator pipes at Lincoln hospital and across the trust, to ensure that the events cannot be repeated.”