A PENSIONER died after he was given the wrong medicine by an exhausted care home assistant working alone, a court was told yesterday.

Frank Hutchison, a long-term resident at The Hollies, in Norton, died at the University Hospital of North Tees, in nearby Stockton, on April 7.

The 67-year-old, who had lived at the residential home for people with mental disorders for 18 years, had been given another resident's medication in a mix-up on February 28, Teesside Crown Court was told.

Mr Hutchinson, who was a schizophrenic, fell into a coma and died less than six weeks later from a pulmonary embolism.

Christina Hooper, 53, owner of The Hollies, and senior care assistant Marion Dixon, also 53, are charged with manslaughter by gross negligence. They both deny the charge.

It is understood to be the first time the owner of a care home has faced such charges after the death of a resident.

The court was told that Ms Dixon, of Lumley Road, Billingham, near Stockton, had worked a 12-hour night shift alone at the home before administering the wrong medicine to Mr Hutchison, at about 7.15am.

She had returned to work less than two weeks earlier, following the sudden death of her husband on February 1.

A letter to Mrs Hooper from Stockton Borough Council, dated September 4, 1998, stipulated that The Hollies should have one member of staff awake and working, with another staff member asleep at the home but on call, during every night shift.

However, the court was told that the home carried on with its policy of having only one member of staff on night duty.

James Goss QC, prosecuting, said: "The Crown's case is that each of the two defendants was in breach of the duty of care that she owed to Mr Hutchison and thereby exposed him to the risk of death and are guilty of criminal negligence."

"It is not alleged that either of the defendants wanted to cause Mr Hutchison any intentional harm or suffering.

"The charge is that of manslaughter by gross negligence."

Mr Goss told the court that Mr Hutchison had been diagnosed as schizophrenic in 1976, but provided he received the appropriate medication, he was able to come and go freely without supervision.

He said that on the morning of February 28, Ms Dixon had mistakenly given Mr Hutchison medicine prescribed to another resident, Christopher Taylor.

Mr Hutchison was given 100mgs of the drug Setraline and 350mgs of Clozapine in error.

Home Office pathologist Dr William Lawler and Professor Robert Forrest, a toxicologist based at Sheffield, both concluded that the Setraline would not have had any serious effect on Mr Hutchison, but the amount of Clozapine would have made a "significant contribution to the mechanism of his death".

Mr Goss explained that Clozapine was a drug that people had to be weaned on to gradually, starting with small doses and working up to about 300mg per day after several weeks.

In Mr Hutchison's case, said Mr Goss, Clozapine was not a drug that he was receiving and was not typical for treating schizophrenia. Mr Hutchinson would not have had sufficient tolerance to the drug, and it was this that led to his eventual death, he added.

Mr Goss read from a recorded interview Ms Dixon had given to police on March 16, shortly before Mr Hutchison died.

In the interview, under caution, Ms Dixon described events on the morning of February 28

She said: "Frank (Hutchison) is not a great sleeper, but he was late getting up that morning. I made him some porridge and thought I would give Chris (Taylor) his medication.

"Frank came in, so I thought I would give him his medication before he wandered off and I had to go looking for him.

"Somebody asked me for something, and I picked the tablets up and gave him them.

"I've done that God knows how many times before, but for some reason I've looked at these tablets and it just has not registered.

"I gave Frank the tablets and he took them - that's all I know.

"I should not have popped two tablets - that was wrong and I know it was wrong. I don't know why I did it."

When asked by police if she thought she had been adequately trained, Ms Dixon replied: "I don't know. I think probably you should not really be giving drugs out on your own. Obviously you have been working all night and you are tired.

"I've had the training but I made a mistake. I should not have done it like that."

The court heard that Ms Dixon had quickly realised her mistake, but did nothing about it for about 40 minutes, by which time the day staff had arrived.

She eventually told a colleague, Linda Dyer, what had happened. Ms Dyer spoke to Mr Hutchison, who, she said, appeared unaffected by the medication.

However, Mr Hutchison slipped into a coma and was taken to the North Tees hospital by ambulance, where he arrived about one hour after taking the wrong drugs.

Prof Forrest's report said that, had Mr Hutchison been taken to hospital earlier, it may have made a difference to the outcome, but it was no more than a possibility.

Ms Dixon was initially suspended from her job after the incident but was subsequently reinstated while Mr Hutchison was still alive. She was eventually dismissed by letter on May 2.

The case continues.