Trust apologises for 'avoidable' death in mental health unit

A health trust has apologised to a Teesside family after their mother was able to take her own life in a mental health unit despite warning staff that she planned to kill herself.

Maureen Sigsworth, 58, was a paranoid schizophrenic in the care of the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust when she died.

It happened in February 2014 at the Roseberry Park Hospital in Middlesbrough. Mrs Sigsworth drowned in a bath after a nurse, who should have been supervising her, left her alone.

After reaching a financial settlement with the family the Trust subsequently issued a statement saying: "We are very sorry about Mrs Sigsworth's tragic death and understand how distressing this must have been for her family.

"Whilst we cannot change what happened we have done everything in our power to prevent anything similar happening again."

Mrs Sigworth's two daughters, Dawn and Tracy Owen, still maintain their mother's death could have been avoided.