The devastated mum of an autistic woman who died from drinking too much water says she would still be alive were it not for lapses in her care.
Catherine Mitchell, 20, was supported round-the-clock by two staff at Springfield University Hospital, in London. Still, an inquest has heard that no one understood the dangers of her constant thirst for water.
Catherine Mitchell, who died in NHS care after drinking herself to death with water
Water toxicity
Mum Joanne Mitchell, 62, from Surrey, wants to see specialist autism wards and training on the dangers of water toxicity.
She said her daughter would still be “here today“ had she received the “proper treatment and hadn’t faced blatant negligence that allowed her to self-harm”.
She said the staff meant to be monitoring her fell asleep on multiple occasions and she was regularly able to “swallow things and harm herself”.
Loud, bright environment
Mitchell also said the loud, bright and busy hospital environment was unsuitable for an autistic woman in crisis.
The inquest heard the staff did not know that excessive drinking could lead to water toxicity and death.
The jury concluded that Catherine died in May 2021 from “excessive consumption of water whilst under two-to-one supervision”.
It also ruled the probable cause of death was “nursing and medical staff failed to properly assess the risk from water toxicity”.
Future deaths report
Coroner Paul Rogers is writing a prevention of future deaths report highlighting the lack of services for autistic women with multiple other diagnoses in acute crises.
Negligence lawyer Nadine Refaat, of the law firm Hodge Jones & Allen, represented Mitchell at the hearing.
She said only “meaningful change” in the treatment of “people, and particularly women with autism” will “make a difference”.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust, which runs Springfield, said it was “deeply sorry” and Catherine’s care was “not good enough”.
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Published: 3 December 2024
