Concerns raised as woman dies after being unable to reach emergency alarm at London care home

A coroner has raised concerns after an elderly woman was left unable to ring an emergency alarm after she fell at a South West London care home.

Joan Murphy, 90, died after a fall at Deer Park View, in Teddington, on January 30 this year.

Melanie Lee, coroner for West London, said that although Ms Murphy managed to shout for help when she fell in the care home on January 15, she was not wearing an alarm and could not reach the emergency call bell hanging from her bathroom ceiling.

In a new Prevention of Future Deaths report, Ms Lee raised concerns that residents at the care home did not have wearable emergency buttons and could not reach bathroom emergency cords from the floor if they fell.

Care UK, which runs the care home, said Deer Park View did not have wearable alarms at the time of the incident, in response to Ms Lee’s report, although alternative equipment like sensors and call bells were available.

It said the care home had since ordered wearable alarms to make sure they are available for any resident who needs one.

Ms Murphy, who was at high risk of falls, joined the care home for respite after a series of falls at home over Christmas 2025.

The report said she fell in her bathroom on the morning of January 15 and could not reach the emergency alarm cord, while she was also not wearing an alarm.

Ms Murphy shouted for help and was later taken to St George’s Hospital, in Tooting, where doctors found she had fractured ribs.

She suffered a heart attack and died in hospital on January 30.

An inquest ruled Ms Murphy’s death was an accident. The coroner gave her medical cause of death as pneumonia and heart failure, followed by fractures resulting from a fall.

The report said: “Joan managed to shout repeatedly and attract attention but strained her voice and was left hoarse doing so. I presume that the bedroom door as a minimum was a fire door. Another resident may not be able to shout or otherwise summons attention and this could result, for example, in a long lie.

“Joan did not have a pendant/wearable/personable alarm. Despite requests querying this, I did not receive an answer as to why not.”

Liam Jennings, Care UK’s Regional Director, said: “We again offer our condolences to the family of Mrs Murphy. We pride ourselves on offering kind, safe care to all residents in our homes such that whenever a safety incident occurs, we carry out a thorough investigation to identify any areas of learning within the home.

“We have already implemented several improvements to prevent this from happening again, including additional risk assessments. This home is currently rated ‘Good’ by the Care Quality Commission.”