THE FAMILY of an 80-year-old woman who died after falling down the stairs say she would have survived if she was given a stairlift.
An inquest on September 4 heard Rita Stevenson, of Strelley Road, Strelley, died in hospital on April 19 from respiratory problems after suffering fractured ribs in the fall two days earlier.
Deputy coroner Heidi Connor gave a conclusion of accidental death but son Mark Stevenson, 50, and his wife Diane, 47, feel Mrs Stevenson would still be alive had a stair lift been installed.
The couple, of Yatesbury Crescent, Strelley, say they were asking for the council to install a lift for two years.
Mr Stevenson said: "I know she'd still be with us today if they had have put a stairlift in. I would be going round this Sunday to cook her dinner."
Mr Stevenson, a property maintenance worker, put up handrails in the house to help his mother get around as he did not want to put the cost on the city council.
A risk assessment after Mrs Stevenson suffered a stroke in 2009 said she was too confused to use a stairlift, which is disputed by the family.
"She wasn't always sure what day it was all the time but she could use a washing machine, make a cup of tea or toast so I don't see how she'd struggle with a stairlift," said Mr Stevenson.
"We didn't ask for anything else but every time we contacted the council they just fobbed us off."
After further assessments in February 2013, Mrs Stevenson was offered motion sensors which detect her position on the stairs, which Mr Stevenson says were not appropriate.
"There's no point," he said. "They're designed to detect if it takes her longer than 15 minutes to get down the stairs. When she fell, it will have taken two seconds."
Mrs Stevenson was found at the bottom of the stairs by her carer Julie Mellor, of Ark Home Healthcare, who used to help her with basic care two or three times a day.
Mrs Diane Stevenson said she had arranged the latest risk assessment around six weeks before her mother-in-law's death.
But despite Julie making a special trip to be there while on holiday, Mrs Stevenson says no one arrived.
"They didn't even leave messages on the answer machine," she said. "On the phone I asked again if she could have a stairlift and it took them six weeks to get back to me."
On the day of his mother's death, Mr Stevenson said he raised the issue at Strelley Health Centre.
"I was told the paperwork landed on the desk that morning," he said. "I told them not to bother because it was too late."
Helen Jones, director of adult social care at Nottingham City Council, offered her condolences to the family.
"Mrs Stevenson's family ultimately decided against the sensors and we next received a referral on March 10 this year. An assessment was due to take place on April 22, which was the day we were sadly informed that Mrs Stevenson had died."
