Caregiver Feeding Swallowing Disorder Patient Five Times in 80 Seconds

Patient's Digestive Function Declines Due to Swallowing Disorder
Dies from Airway Obstructive Asphyxia

A care worker who hastily fed porridge to a patient suffering from a chronic illness, who could only slowly consume thin porridge, resulting in the patient's death, was sentenced to probation.

On the 10th, Judge Kim Ji-yeon of the Gwangju District Court Criminal Division 6 announced that care worker A (59), who was charged with 'professional negligence resulting in death,' was sentenced to six months in prison with a two-year probation.

Caregiver. Stock photo unrelated to the incident and content.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

A was indicted for hastily feeding porridge to an elderly patient in their 80s admitted to a nursing home in Hwasun-gun, Jeollanam-do, at 4:28 p.m. on August 21 of last year, causing death by airway obstruction asphyxiation.

The victim had no teeth and suffered from dysphagia (swallowing disorder), with impaired digestive function, and was only able to eat thin porridge.

On the day of the incident, the patient was eating porridge alone slowly, taking one spoonful every 55 seconds for 30 minutes. Despite being aware of the patient's health condition, A took the bowl of porridge and hastily fed the patient five times over 1 minute and 20 seconds.

After A fed the porridge, at around 5:46 p.m. the same day, the patient experienced respiratory distress and died from airway obstruction asphyxiation.

A claimed, "I only put the porridge that had dripped out of the mouth back into the mouth; I did not hastily feed the porridge," but the court, based on internal CCTV footage from the nursing home, judged that the patient died due to A's breach of duty of care.

Judge Kim stated that although A neglected the duty of care at work and was not forgiven by the bereaved family, "considering that insurance money could be paid to the family and the poor health condition of the patient at the time of death, probation was sentenced."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.