Prince of Wales Hospital patient dies after choking on regular meal

A male patient dies after choking on his regular meal at Prince of Wales Hospital.

The latter says the hospital's nurses were unaware that the patient was on a puree diet and has apologised to the man's family.

This as hospital staff involved in the incident have been temporarily arranged for non-clinical duties.

The 54-year-old patient suffered from dementia and previously had a stroke, which resulted in him requiring a puree diet.

He was transported to Prince of Wales Hospital's A&E for treatment after his health condition worsened on Wednesday morning, and was subsequently sent to the facility's medical ward.

Preliminary investigations indicate a doctor instructed a number of nurses tending to the man to adhere to DAT, otherwise known as "diet as tolerated," which would allow him to gradually return to a regular diet.

The patient did not carry identification documents when he was admitted. Instead, he was registered under a "virtual identification number" that was assigned to him on the spot.

Hospital records show a regular meal was arranged for the patient.

Nurses tending to the man did not check his prior diet records and ended up serving him a regular meal for dinner.

At the time of the meal, a patient care assistant noticed the man felt unwell and immediately notified nurses.

ENT and intensive care personnel went on to remove the food that was causing the blockage, during which the man suffered a cardiac arrest.

His condition continued to deteriorate, ultimately resulting in his death later in the night.

The hospital says it is highly concerned with the incident and issued an apology to the man's family.

It is also implementing immediate measures such as reminding hospital staff to carefully assess patients' diet records before their meals.

This as Prince of Wales Hospital will submit a report on the matter to the Hospital Authority Head Office within eight weeks.