CARBOLIC POISONING

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVII, Issue 19667, 8 December 1933, Page 5

CARBOLIC POISONING

TRAGIC OCCURRENCE IN HOSPITAL. By Telessrft —Press Association CHRISTCHURCH, December 7. The inquest into the death of Mrs Lillian Rhoda James, aged 30, in the Kaikoura Hospital, on October 22, was concluded at Kaikoura to-day. The inquest was opened on October 23, and adjourned a post-mortem examination to be made. At the inquest on that day it was stated that Sister E. L. Frances, who was in charge at the time, gave Mrs James an injection on admission. Mrs James complained of feeling unwell shortly afterwards, became unconscious, and died the day after admission. It was later discovered that the basin used for the injection had previously been used by Nurse McCoombe, who had left some carbolic solution in it. Nurse McCoombe said that she had put the basin in the part of the cupboard which she considered her cleaning cupboard. In another part of the cupboard were kept all the appliances used when giving injections. The basin which had contained carbolic had been placed by her at the bottom of the cupboard with the cleaning utensils, and it was not the practice for vessels used in the treatment of patients to be taken from that part of the cupboard. The evidence of Dr. A. B. Pearson, who had conducted the post-mortem examination, was that the death of Mrs James was due to carbolic acid poisoning. He attributed death to paralysis of the vital centres of the brain resulting from poisoning by carbolic acid. The coroner’s verdict was to the effect that death was due to carbolic poisoning.