A Scottish hospital has apologised to the family of a woman who took her own life and improved its processes for identifying patient risks since her death. The son of former psychiatrist Dr Sara MacRae claims he gave a nurse “clear evidence” that his mother was planning to take her own life just hours before she died. Christopher MacRae hoped the evidence would prompt a search of his mum’s bedroom for potential dangers, but this did not happen and Dr MacRae killed herself in her room at a psychiatric hospital in Edinburgh in March 2020.
The door in Dr MacRae’s room had been assessed as a “high risk” for suicide attempts the year before she died, but it has still not been replaced. Despite a recommended £5m programme to upgrade all single bedroom doors at the hospital, the work has not yet started – despite being described as “urgent” in 2022. Andrew Picken reports for BBC News Scotland that an internal review by NHS Lothian into the incident concluded that the way the case was managed “had a direct impact on the level of harm”.
Christopher MacRae was the main carer for his mother, who suffered from mental illnesses for decades. NHS Lothian previously told BBC Scotland that a project to upgrade the doors at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital was still to get under way due to budget constraints. Dr Tracey Gillies, medical director at NHS Lothian said: “It would be inappropriate to comment on an ongoing legal process, but we extend our sincere condolences to Christopher and his family”.
The circumstances leading to Dr MacRae’s death at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital are currently being considered at a fatal accident inquiry (FAI). However, BBC Scotland reports that a safety briefing for staff working on Dr MacRae’s ward on the night of her death was not completed until four weeks after the incident. Ward staff did not know that Dr MacRae had previously made similar attempts to take her own life. A nurse has admitted it was “an error of judgment” not to take Christopher’s warnings and evidence more seriously and not to search Dr MacRae’s room
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
