Nurse killed herself on third attempt after becoming too stressed at work, inquest finds
Coroner vows to write to Royal Stoke Hospital warning of overworking staff
AN NHS nurse committed suicide on her third attempt after becoming too stressed at work, an inquest has found.
Ann Burdett's body was discovered in a pond after she drowned herself in May -- just a week after she had been referred to mental health services.
The coroner has promised to write to Royal Stoke Hospital -- where Ann, 51, had worked in the baby unit -- to raise concerns about stressed staff.
Her fiance, Andrew Ward, said the combination of a heavy workload and the stress of moving house had taken its toll, the reports.
Ms Burdett, of Manor Court, Bishops Offley, had worked as a nurse for 25 years, first in Stafford before transferring to Royal Stoke.
It was here that Ms Burdett began to show signs of distress, working irregular hours but refusing to open up about her job, Mr Ward said.
Mental health services contacted her after she tried to drown herself on May 19 but returned home covered in mud.
She said she no longer had thoughts of suicide but the clinical team had concerns
Jane Hambleton, senior manager of the South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust said Ms Burdett was reluctant to talk about her mental well-being.
"She talked about her previous suicide attempts and said it had been a half-hearted attempt to end her life", Ms Hambleton said.
"She said she no longer had thoughts of suicide but the clinical team had concerns."
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The inquest heard Ms Burdett was due to attend another meeting with the mental health team on the day of her death.
She went missing at 6am after having drank enough to put her three times over the legal drink drive limit.
She was found in the pond near her home at 4pm following a police search.
Recording a verdict of suicide by drowning, Coroner Margaret Jones said: "She was a professional lady and was able to hide her feelings from her family."
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