Care Resident Died After Fall - Hospital Came a Day Late
An Alvesta nursing-home resident slid out of bed, hit their head and felt sick. Staff waited until the next day to call an ambulance. The resident died in hospital. The care watchdog is reviewing the case.
ALVESTA - An elderly care resident in Alvesta slid out of bed, hit their head and felt sick afterwards. Staff still waited until the next day to call an ambulance. The resident died in hospital. Sweden's care watchdog is now reviewing the case.
The incident happened earlier this year at a special nursing home in Alvesta municipality in SmĂĄland. The resident was found lying face-down in front of the bed. The municipality's care department says the person had slid out of bed and fallen to the floor.
After the fall, staff noted that the resident had lost their balance and felt nauseous when moving. Only the following day was the person taken to hospital by ambulance, Swedish Radio's P4 Kronoberg reports. They later died there.
The case has been reported to the Health and Social Care Inspectorate (IVO) under lex Maria, the Swedish rule that requires care providers to report serious patient-safety incidents. SmĂĄlandsposten reports that a nurse was contacted after the fall and that a fall report was written.
Municipality reviewing procedures
Alvesta municipality says it is now reviewing its procedures in several areas to stop something similar happening again.
Which home was involved has not been made public. The resident's age and the exact date of the fall have also not been disclosed.
READ MORE: Home-Care Patient Pressed Alarm at Night - Nobody Came, Found Dead
Falls are already a known problem in the municipality's elderly care. In its 2025 patient-safety report, the care department says falls generate the most incident reports. Hip fractures rose that year from seven to twelve.
Around 2,000 elderly die after falls each year
Falls kill more people in Sweden than any other type of accident. According to the National Board of Health and Welfare, more than 100,000 people over 65 seek care after a fall every year.
Around 70,000 of them need hospital admission. About 2,000 elderly people die.
The board stresses that many falls can be prevented with the right measures.
Simon Kristoffersson · Responsible Publisher & Senior Editor (Ansvarig utgivare)
Simon Kristoffersson is the Legally Responsible Publisher (Ansvarig utgivare) and Senior Investigative Editor of Samnytt and Samnytt News under Sweden's Constitutional Freedom of the Press Act, specializing in courts, organized crime, municipal governance, and public-sector investigations.
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