Brutal attack ends with fine.

Byline: Peter Guy

A CARE worker was beaten unconscious by a schizophrenic who threatened to kill her, a court heard.

And her colleague was elbowed in the face while trying to restrain the man following the attack, which happened while the two woman were escorting the patient on holiday.

Former North Sefton and West Lancashire Community NHS Trust, which is now part of Mersey Care, was ordered to pay more than pounds 26,000 by magistrates yesterday for a breach of general duty, under health and safety legislation as a result of the attack.

The incident happened in October 2000 when community carers Elizabeth Barrett and Melissa Derby volunteered to take two patients on a caravanning holiday in Cumbria.

Ormskirk Magistrates heard how one patient, identified only as `SL', a diagnosed schizophrenic, had spent much of his life being cared for in the community with a history of unpredictability, violence and aggression. He was also rated as a high risk patient needing 24-hour supervision and medication.

A Trust member of staff had been on holiday with SL in February 1999, and on return said he would never go anywhere with him again.

SL was due to celebrate his 60th birthday and it was suggested by Miss Barrett that he go on holiday. The holiday was approved by management and appropriate travel arrangements were made. Patient two, `SK' went as he ``enjoyed swimming pools and activity places''.

On Tuesday, October 17, the group went swimming, visited an aquarium and a maritime museum. The carers noted that the patients seemed in good spirits and at ease in a friendly atmosphere.

John Batty, prosecuting, said: ``They left the museum at 2.55pm so that SL could have a cigarette, when suddenly he swore at Miss Barrett and threatened to kill her. He then punched her, knocking her to the floor. He continued punching her head and the top of her body before Miss Barrett lost consciousness.''

Miss Derby managed to pull Miss Barrett away and restrain SL but, in doing so, sustained facial injuries when he elbowed her in the jaw.

She managed to defuse the situation by promising SL a cigarette but, as Miss Barrett came round, he continued to shout: ``I'll kill you''.

The carers tried to call Trust staff but their mobile phone had no signal. They returned home early the next day.

John McArver, acting on behalf of Mersey Care, said specific holiday procedures were now in place which included ``a full risk assessment.''

He urged the magistrates to consider that the body paying the fine, Mersey Care, was not the health body that had insufficient procedures or that entered the original ``not guilty'' plea earlier this year.

David Ashley, chairman of the Bench, found Mersey Care guilty of insufficient procedural checks including inadequate planning, insufficient management checks, no measures to see if staff are trained to deal with patients needs and requirements, and the patients risk assessment was not taken into consideration.

Mersey Care was found guilty of breaching section 21 of the Health and Safety Work Act 1974 and was fined pounds 12,000 with additional court costs of pounds 14,602 and 15 pence.