Ligature anchor point risks ‘known’

Rebecca Sangster and her twin brother Tom were born just days before Christmas 1983.

The family moved to Abernethy in February 1988 and Rebecca had a very happy childhood.

In 2002, she fulfilled one of her childhood wishes to become a princess when she became Abernethy Gala Queen.

She trained as a nurse at Perth College, before deciding it was not the career for her, and worked in the retail sector.

Around the same time, she won a letter of commendation from the police for coming to the rescue of an elderly neighbour.

Rebecca later moved to Dunfermline to study at Lauder College, where she was named student of the year for jewellery studies.

She went on to work for the Royal Bank of Scotland until 2008, when she moved back to Abernethy to be with her parents.

Despite failing health, she completed an HND in jewellery design at Springburn College, Glasgow, in 2015.

In early October that year, she went to her GP for help and was detained under the Mental Health Act and taken to Murray Royal Hospital. She died in her room at the Moredun Ward just over three weeks later.

Depute fiscal Shona McJannett took two hours to read the 27-page narrative describing the failings during March’s court hearing, .

She said: “One of the most effective ways to prevent suicide is to reduce access to the means of achieving that outcome. The risk of suicide is well known in healthcare.

“One of the primary means of tackling the issue is to identify and remove ligature points. The management of ligature anchor points by Tayside Health Board within the Moredun Ward was chaotic.”

She said a fatal accident inquiry – attended by NHS Tayside – several years earlier found a patient had hung himself from a King’s Fund traditional hospital bed, adding: “The risk associated with ligature anchor points on the beds was known to the health board since 2009, if not before.

“Despite this, in April 2012, 52 brand new King’s Fund beds were purchased by the NHS Tayside Commissioning Office for use in Moredun Ward prior to the opening of the hospital.”