Prison officer 'sniggered' at sick inmate warning

A prison officer "sniggered" when told an inmate who turned out to be critically ill had been sleeping for 22 hours, an investigation found.

Former shopkeeper Shafaq Khan, 52, died in hospital from complications linked to diabetes after being found unresponsive at HMP Hindley, near Wigan, on 19 December 2022.

An investigation by the regulator the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) also found there were failings in how Khan's diabetes was managed behind bars.

The Ministry of Justice said the prison officer had received training and advice and was now back at work.

Khan had been serving an eight year sentence for manslaughter after carbon monoxide fumes from a petrol generator he was using in his Middleton shop killed a man who was a tenant in the flat above.

The PPO investigation found Khan, from Rochdale, had been unwell after contracting flu, but his blood sugar levels had also been raised.

At 08:10 GMT on 19 December another prisoner approached a guard, referred to as Officer A, and told him he "needed to call healthcare" as Khan had been asleep for 22 hours.

According to PPO investigator Adrian Usher, Officer A "sniggered" and said "Mr Khan was probably having a laugh".

The officer failed to contact the prison's healthcare team or check on the critically ill inmate.

It was not until 11:14 that another prison officer discovered Mr Khan unresponsive in his cell when he tried to serve his lunch.

Khan underwent CPR but remained critically unwell in hospital.

Doctors found he had diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a life-threatening condition caused by lack of insulin, and severe kidney injury due to dehydration.

He also developed sepsis and other complications, and died on 28 February, 2023.

Mr Usher wrote in his report that Officer A was investigated by Greater Manchester Police, who concluded there was insufficient evidence for any criminal charges.

The PPO investigation concluded that the healthcare Khan received in prison, delivered by Spectrum Community Health CIC, was not of the required standard.

Mr Usher found that on 30 June, 2022, GP services at the prison failed to share irregular blood sugar readings with nursing staff, who therefore did not monitor him effectively.

He had also been referred to the prison's long-term conditions clinic for oversight of his diabetes and high blood-pressure, but the nurse who ran it was on maternity leave.

While a clinical expert instructed by the PPO said she could not be sure closer monitoring would have saved him, she concluded there were "missed opportunities".

A spokesperson from Spectrum said the service was "fully committed" to implementing changes recommended by the report.

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