Tragic death of 24-year-old Wigan man caused by pneumonia

Michael Bache, 24, died on Saturday, June 10 at Hyndelle Lodge in Hindley, where he was a resident in a supported living apartment.

Staff told Bolton Coroner’s Court that his skin suddenly changed colour and his breathing became shallow, so paramedics were called, but sadly he could not be saved.

Michael was part of a large family, attended a residential college before moving to Hyndelle Lodge, loved music and supported Everton FC.

He had cerebral palsy and epilepsy, was non-verbal and communicated by indicating “yes” or “no”, suffered from chest infections and muscle spasms, and was fed via a gastrostomy tube, also known as a peg.

His mother Philippa Bache told the inquest she last saw Michael on Wednesday, June 7 and thought he did not seem quite right, but she checked his temperature and oxygen levels and everything appeared to be fine.

Michael received one-to-one care, which became two-to-one when he was moved, and was with support worker Olalekan Hammed on Saturday, June 10.

He said he gave medication and food to Michael that morning via his peg and then showered and dressed him, with colleague Michelle Gee.

They moved Michael into his chair, something he did not like but which was beneficial to his health. The inquest heard about a regimen put in place to do this, which included providing painkillers if he was uncomfortable.

Mr Hammed said Michael was “agitated” and “kept wriggling”, but they spoke to him to calm him down and gave anti-anxiety medication diazepam.

Michael fell asleep in his chair and stayed there for several hours – something his mother said was unusual as he did not tend to stay in the chair for long.

When he awoke, Mr Hammad left the room briefly to fetch a colleague so they could move Michael to his bed.

He said that after moving Michael and removing his back brace, he saw a red mark and asked his colleague to fetch Mrs Gee.

She said: "When I turned and looked at Michael’s face, he was going grey in colour and his breathing was getting shallow.”

Emergency services were called and staff tried to help Michael, carrying out CPR and using a defibrillator.

Paramedics found Michael had a high temperature and his skin was hot to touch, he had vomit in his airway and he was unresponsive.

They tried to resuscitate him but sadly Michael died.

A post-mortem examination found he died from pneumonia, with consultant pathologist Dr Naveen Sharma explaining it can cause “acute respiratory failure” even among those who are “relatively asymptomatic”.

He said Michael’s high temperature could be a “soft sign” of an infection, while sleeping during the day could suggest he was tired and lethargic, which could be another symptom.

There was nothing to suggest he died by choking after vomiting, he said.

Dr Sharma recorded Michael’s medical cause of death as pneumonia, caused by cerebral palsy, with epilepsy as a contributing factor.

Toxicology tests found evidence of Michael’s medication but not diazepam. The inquest heard further investigations found it at a very low rate, suggesting it had not been absorbed by his body before he died.

Coroner Stephen Teasdale concluded Michael died by natural causes.