Eating disorder girl dies at clinic despite checks every hour
A STUDENT with an eating disorder was found dead at an NHS unit said to be plagued by staff shortages – despite being on an hourly watch.
Former waitress Zoe Clark, 22, had endured a long battle with her condition and was being treated by specialists at a secure centre.
Weeks before her death, she came out in support of several campaigns calling for an improvement in NHS care standards for patients with eating disorders.
She had also signed a petition urging Theresa May to ‘show your support for people battling an eating disorder and make a positive change happen.’
Miss Clark’s body was found on August 22 at 1.33am in her room at The Haldon, part of Wonford House Hospital in Exeter. It is not clear at what time nurses last checked on her.
Police are not treating the death as suspicious but NHS officials have launched an investigation amid claims of chronic staff shortages at the centre, which can treat 20 patients at a time.
An employee who works for Devon Partnership Trust, which runs NHS services in the area, said staff had warned about a lack of nurses.
‘Staff have repeatedly raised concerns that the ward was unsafe due to insufficient staffing,’ the unnamed employee said. ‘It had been repeatedly flagged up by ward staff as a major risk factor.’
Paying tribute on Facebook, one friend wrote: ‘One of Zoe’s best traits was her infectious laugh and humour, and her rugged determination.
‘Zoe you fought and fought this insidious illness. A stronger person would be hard to find.’
Paul Keedwell, director of nursing and practice at Devon Partnership Trust, said Miss Clark’s death was the first of its kind at the unit which had ‘an excellent reputation’.
He added: ‘This is an extremely sad event and we extend our deepest sympathies to the family. There will be an independent investigation and we have invited the family to participate in this.
‘While we don’t want to preempt the findings of this investigation, it is important to reassure people that staff numbers and observation levels on the night in question were entirely as they should have been.
An inquest has been opened in Exeter and the results of a postmortem examination are pending. It is not clear which eating disorder she was suffering from.
Miss Clark’s parents, Kevin and Gail, of Cockwood, near Exeter, said yesterday that they did not wish to comment.