Patient died in toilet after monitor left unsupervised

A CARDIAC patient was found dead on the floor of a hospital toilet after a machine monitoring his heart rate was left unsupervised.

An inquest into the death of Richard Cassidy, 47, from Lissarda, Co Cork, also heard that the Coronary Care Unit (CCU) at Cork University Hospital’s (CUH) €85 million cardiac renal unit, which was officially opened last October, was understaffed on the day of his death.

Cardiologist Dr Peter Kearney told Cork City Coroner’s Court yesterday that Mr Cassidy’s death on February 25 prompted an internal review.