A GREENOCK care home resident who choked to death was being fed by a member of staff when food became lodged in his throat, a fatal accident inquiry heard yesterday.

Robert McPaul, 70, became distressed and was losing consciousness as care workers tried a number of techniques to remove the item which was restricting his breathing, Greenock Sheriff Court was told.

Mr McPaul - who had choked on a number of occasions previously - had mistakenly been given steak pie for his dinner instead of a dish more suited to his dietry requirements. 

The long-awaited inquiry into his death has begun just weeks before the sixth anniversary of his passing on March 30, 2018.

A witness told the court: “I tried to see if there was anything in his mouth.

“I tried to bang on his back.”

The witness and staff members tried to dislodge the food using a thrusting technique, but were not successful.

She added: “By this time, Bert was getting distressed and losing consciousness.

“We got him out in the hallway and the ambulance had been phoned.

“We tried starting CPR.”

Mr McPaul passed away shortly before 6pm that evening.

He had choked on food which was unsuitable for his dietary requirements.

The witness explained that a ‘pattern of choking’ had been identified in relation to Mr McPaul in the years prior to his passing.

He was treated by doctors following choking incidents on several occasions from March 2015 onwards.

In May 2017, staff were instructed to keep a food diary for a period of two weeks.

It had been indicated that the issues were ‘mostly behavioural’ - such as eating too quickly - with carers being advised to supervise Mr McPaul during meal times.

In October 2017, staff were also made aware of a need to check Mr McPaul’s mouth for food after meals.

The witness told the inquiry: “You just had to be careful with him.”

A textured diet, consisting of pre-mashed food, was implemented as of December 2017.

An action plan was put in place by care home staff in November 2017, with Mr McPaul’s eating and drinking being reviewed regularly.

On the day of Mr McPaul’s death, the witness had been in the dining area of the care home with a colleague and a group of residents.

Mr McPaul had been due to receive a chicken paella dish but was mistakenly given steak pie, which was unsuitable for those on soft diets.

The witness recalled mashing the food up with the back of a fork – as was the practice for his particular textured diet.

The inquiry heard that the mashing of food was completed by kitchen staff, but carers would often double check meals to be ‘cautious’.

The witness said: “It did look adequate for eating – it was just to make sure there was nothing hard."

The alarm was raised when another carer, who was feeding Mr McPaul, realised that he was choking.

The inquiry, before Sheriff Sheena Fraser, continues with several more witnesses due to give evidence.