Lily Lucas inquest: Nurse seen drinking excessive water

Lily Lucas was a mental health nurse before she died

A mental health nurse who was found unresponsive at a private hospital was drinking excessive amounts of water before her death, an inquest heard.

Lily Lucas, 28, died while an NHS patient at the Cygnet Hospital near Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, in 2022 after being diagnosed with schizophrenia.

An inquest opened on Monday to examine the circumstances of her death.

Her family said she was "beautiful, loving, generous and hilarious".

Ms Lucas, from Malmesbury in Wiltshire, was admitted to the Cygnet Hospital under the Mental Health Act on 15 June 2022 after her mental health symptoms escalated.

She and her family hoped it would be an opportunity to for her to get better, the inquest was told.

On 5 September, she was prescribed antipsychotic drug Clozapine to help manage her symptoms after her mental health had deteriorated the month before.

Clozapine has been licensed for the treatment of schizophrenia on the NHS in the UK since 1990.

The jury at Avon Coroner's Court, in Bristol, heard Ms Lucas and her family were concerned about the prescription.

In the hours leading up to her collapse, the jury heard, Ms Lucas was seen drinking excessive volumes of water and eating excessively large quantities of food which was "uncharacteristic".

On 8 September, she was found unresponsive in her room and, despite CPR, was transferred to the Bristol Royal Infirmary for treatment.

She died the following day.

'Significantly let down'

In a statement, Ms Lucas' family said they "trusted" Cygnet, adding that "the fact they significantly let her down in her time of need compounds our grief and despair".

The statement continued: "Lily leaves behind a family who could not have loved her more. Our loss is immeasurable and often overwhelming.

"Life will never be the same without our beautiful daughter and sister.

"We are deeply concerned by the failures which have been identified by the hospital's internal investigation and hope no other family has to read similar things about their loved one."

The family added that they hope the inquest will highlight areas that need to be improved the safety of other patients.

The inquest, opened by coroner Dr Peter Harrowing, is expected to last 10 days.

It will focus on the care Ms Lucas received at the hospital, as well as the prescription of Clozapine, the events prior to her collapse and the subsequent emergency response.

She had been admitted to at least 15 psychiatric wards over a five-year period, her mother said, adding that stays ranged from four weeks to nine months.

Her mother said Ms Lucas was diagnosed with PTSD early due to "every kind of abuse" from a former boyfriend, although she never had the psychological support to deal with it.

Her admission to Cygnet Hospital came after being arrested for threatening her father with a knife in May 2022, the hearing was told.