Paramedics and the Mental Capacity Act

A recent coroners report has found a series of concerns surrounding the death of Tracey Ostler. Having taken an overdose at home, Ms Ostler refused to go to hospital when paramedics were called to her home. The coroners report states:

‘The paramedics who attended Ms Ostler on the 16^th June 2023 failed:

i.to undertake an adequate capacity assessment

ii.to comply with the policy that advised them to make collaborative decisions in life threatening circumstances

iii.to seek clinical advice before concluding that Ms Ostler had capacity to refuse hospital admission’

‘I am concerned that the training they had received, both whilst students and subsequently, had not been adequate to equip them to undertake adequate capacity assessments.’

Comment: As an organisation that delivers training on the MCA to health and social care professionals across England and Wales, this concern by the coroner in Surrey does not appear to be an isolated issue.

The Coroners report can be downloaded here:

https://www.judiciary.uk/prevention-of-future-death-reports/tracey-ostler-prevention-of-future-deaths-report/

For free resources on the MCA and training courses go to Edge training at: https://www.edgetraining.org.uk/

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