Nursing home death ruled an accident
By TIM GULLA Ledger Staff Writer tim@gaffneyledger.com

A 100-year-old Cowpens woman's death at the Cherokee County-operated Peachtree Centre earlier this month has been ruled accidental by the Cherokee County Coroner's Office.

Mitchel Agnes Watkins Whelchel, of 297 S. Green River Road, died after falling out of her bed on Nov. 14, prompting an investigation.

Coroner Dennis Fowler said in a report Whelchel died from cardiac arrhythmia due to the stress of her upper body's position after the fall.

"My investigation determined Mrs. Whelchel fell out of her low bed onto a protective pad on the floor 13 inches below," Fowler stated in the report. "She was discovered unresponsive by a member of the nursing staff who had been at her bedside 20 minutes earlier to administer medication."

An internal review of the situation by the facility determined all of its procedures had been followed, said Cindy Matthews, the Peachtree Centre's administrator.

"We actually began (an internal review) the same night it occurred and it correlated with the coroner's office," she said. The center took statements and looked at its procedures to make sure all were followed.

While reviews are ongoing, there are no plans to change policies or procedures at the facility at this time, she said.

Whelchel, who had been a patient at the Peachtree Centre since November 2006, fell out of bed once before. That's why she had been placed in a low bed with a protective pad next to it, Matthews confirmed.

A spokesman for the South Carolina Department of Health, which licenses nursing facilities, was unable to say before press time if the state had conducted a review.

Fowler said he could not offer additional comment.