Carer sacked for refusing to make 999 call

Anne Taylor was in charge of the St Cross Grange residential care home in Winchester, Hampshire, when 94-year-old Ella Davidson started choking.

But instead of calling for an ambulance, she told shocked staff there was no point as the Parkinson's sufferer would "be dead by the time they arrive".

She only checked the dying woman's pulse and made no attempt to resuscitate her, leaving a staff member to watch her die.

An inquest recorded a verdict of accidental death yesterday.

The hearing in Winchester was told that Mrs Davidson continued to gasp for breath for several minutes. Asked if resuscitation would have saved Mrs Davidson, expert doctor David Sutton said it was possible but unlikely.

Police investigated the death in June last year but it was decided that there was not enough evidence to prosecute.

Greensleeves Homes Trust, which runs the home, said in a statement that Mrs Taylor had been dismissed following an internal inquiry.