Drugs stored incorrectly at Gloucester care home where man died

The drugs mistakenly given to a man who later died were incorrectly stored at the care home in which he lived, a court has heard.

Jane Barnard, 67, denies the manslaughter of Derek Davies, 75, who died on 8 September 2021 at the care home where he lived and where she was employed.

Mr Davies died after Mrs Barnard mistakenly gave him medication prescribed for another patient, Jason Dodsworth, including 90mg of slow-release morphine.

A trial at Gloucester Crown Court heard the morphine, a controlled drug, had been stored in the wrong place when it was retrieved by Mrs Barnard. Andrew Langdon KC, defending, said Mrs Barnard had made a “terrible mistake”.

The controlled drugs at Wheatridge Court care home, in Gloucester, were meant to be locked away in a designated room and only administered when two members of staff were present.

However, Mr Dodsworth’s morphine had been incorrectly stored in his bathroom cabinet.

While Barnard, from Longlevens, was not involved in storing the medication, the court heard she had failed to make the correct checks and follow procedure before administering the controlled drug.

She also took the drugs to the wrong resident, Mr Davies, who had been sitting in a communal area of the home.

Mr Langdon said: “These controlled drugs were not, in fact, being properly controlled.

“There had been no proper risk assessment of Jason Dodsworth’s drugs, two others had failed to spot the morphine when booking the drugs in.

“We do not blame them for what went wrong, everyone was under pressure, these are hard-working people who are not paid much and they do their very best.

“It seems that standards, usually high in the home no doubt, had slipped.

“But it is not the manager or the home on trial, it is Jane Barnard.”

At the time of the incident Barnard had been employed as a care worker at Wheatridge Court for 32 years.

“Until that moment, she had led a life that would make any of us proud,” Mr Langdon added.

“She made a terrible mistake.”

The jury has retired to consider its verdict.