Discovering an individual who may have died
6.1 Expected Death
6.2 Refer to Expected death flow chart.
6.3 If you discover a person who you think is dead, whatever the circumstances, make a note of the time and, if available, press the emergency button/community alarm for back up.
6.4 If it is clear that the individual is dead, refer to the contact sheet in their file and follow any instructions noted in case of death.
(Domiciliary care workers are not allowed to be alone in a individual’s house so, if there is no-one else there, after making the appropriate telephone calls the domiciliary care worker will lock the door behind them and wait outside for emergency services/the doctor/next of kin/manager. Please refer to Home Care Policies and Procedures, section 20.10 Domiciliary Care policies and Procedures).
6.5 Phone the GP who will attend at the earliest possible moment to certify the death. (In the case of expected death this may not be until the next morning if the call is made during the night).
6.6 Phone the relevant manager, or emergency duty team if the discovery occurs out of hours, and agree who will take responsibility for contacting the next of kin/emergency contact.
6.7 The „agreed responsible person‟ (6.6) will phone the next of kin/emergency contact, saying they believe the individual has died but this has not been certified by a GP.
6.8 Confirm any cultural or religious considerations regarding death noted on the contact sheet.
6.9 In the interest of privacy and dignity, try to ensure that only people who have an appropriate need to approach the individual, their room and belongings have access to do so.
6.10 If you have to leave the individual try to secure the room they are in.
6.11 Try to ensure that visiting next of kin/representatives are as supported as much as possible.
6.12 Update relevant case notes before leaving work and ensure these are made available to the manager.
6.13 In care homes, the registered manager will notify CQC of the incident within 24 hours, or on the nearest working day. See section 37, Home Care regulations 2001.
Home Care Regulations 2001
