A coroner determined that a Lynn man who was under mental health services for a number of years died from natural causes.
An inquest was held this morning into the death of 59-year-old John Dean, who lived at Adrian Lodge on Gaywood Road, a former assisted living residence in Lynn.
Mr Dean had been known to mental health services in West Norfolk since 1990 after being diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.
He died at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital on June 19 last year after he was admitted with chronic constipation. He was first admitted after vomiting and looking “physically unwell”.
While in hospital, Mr Dean developed type two respiratory failure. This occurs when the body cannot remove enough carbon dioxide, leading to a build-up in the blood, and low oxygen levels.
He contracted sepsis and became increasingly “frail” and was “unlikely to survive” surgery, the inquest heard. He was admitted into the intensive care unit.
Mr Dean was first admitted to hospital on June 4 last year and later moved into the intensive care unit on June 13.
Questions were raised as to whether Mr Dean should have been admitted to the intensive care unit sooner.
However, Dr John Gibson, who works at the intensive care unit at the QEH, said that Mr Dean received “appropriate care” for his condition and was seen by numerous specialists.
A statement was provided by a mental health nurse who worked with Mr Dean prior to his hospital admission. This was read during the inquest.
The nurse said that he suffered from “chronic and enduring” voices in his head and would often withhold having urine and bowel movements.
She added that Mr Dean was prescribed clozapine, an atypical anti-psychotic, to help with his schizophrenia and would attend regular check-ups to monitor the levels of it in his body.
Mr Dean also suffered from numerous other health conditions, including stage three kidney disease and type two diabetes.
Assistant coroner Johanna Thompson determined that Mr Dean died from natural causes.
His medical cause of death was determined to be from multi-organ failure, brought on by septicemia and a urinary tract infection.
Other medical contributing factors were hospital-acquired pneumonia.
