Dead woman rotted in flat for six weeks ‘after mental health team lost track’

A dead rotten in its middle London home for six weeks after ‘appalling’ failures by his mental health team, his family says.

Sophia Yuferev, 37, who suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, was found by police to be ‘significantly unwell’ during a welfare visit on November 16, 2021.

His family says he “fell through the gap” because he missed medical appointments and hadn’t seen his psychiatrist in two years.

They felt no closure to her investigation and say she “could have been saved” if they had seen her “not just as a number but as a human being”.

Officers braved the stench of Sophia’s Hornchurch apartment after being told by her care coordinator that she had missed appointments for her antipsychotic injections.

The artist’s mother, Maria Stockdale of Harold Hill, also raised concerns before police came by the house.

Officers removed Sophia’s peephole and peered out before entering the property.

They were met by a “powerful and overwhelming smell” and found the artist “lying on her back in a white nightgown”.

Sophia had been without her biweekly medication for six weeks, a care coordinator for 10 weeks, and personal independence payments since February 2021.

He was also separated from his mother and her financial support after their last meeting ended in screaming, the East London Coroner’s Court heard.

Her care coordinator only became aware of her missed appointments on November 12 after picking up Sophia’s case, numbering 25 when she joined on October 25.

Due to the level of decomposition, it is unclear if Sophia died within this period, although “there was a post meeting outside the address”.

Sophia’s death remains a mystery to her family, who are desperate to know if she could have been saved.

North East London Foundation Trust care coordinator Oyemike Ogunnusi told the court she first read Sophia’s case file on November 8.

That was nearly a month after Sophia’s last visit to an Upminster depot injection clinic for the schizophrenia drug Flupenthixol Decanoate.

Once alerted to the risk, she acted quickly and did two in-person welfare checks, with no response, before alerting police on November 16.

The coroner initially refused to conduct an investigation, but a campaign by Havering councilor Bob Perry, backed by the Romford Recorder, forced a change of heart.

Sophie died of ketoacidosis, an excessive buildup in the blood of a chemical called keytones, produced by the liver when it breaks down fat.

It is primarily suffered by diabetics, but it can also be caused by alcohol, medications, toxins, or, rarely, starvation.

Dr. Shirley Radcliffe admitted that Sophia’s death would remain “extraordinarily puzzling” due to the decomposition of the body, to the anguish of her family.

A toxicology report found alcohol levels consistent with decomposition and Sophia was known to be a teetotaler, so drinking was ruled out.

A blood test done in June last year showed her blood levels were normal and there was nothing to suggest she was diabetic.

The decomposition also meant it was difficult for pathologists to tell if he had died of an infection.

Attorney Andrew Perfect suggested sudden weight loss could not be ruled out, noting that Sophia had no known income after her benefits were cut.

Sophia’s family told MyLondon she “didn’t have enough money, didn’t have enough energy to feed and take care of herself, wasn’t responsible for herself to take care of herself.”

Pathologists found that his BMI was within the normal range, but he may have stopped eating in the weeks before his death, the inquest heard.

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Much to the anger of her family, consultant psychiatrist Dr. Gupta admitted that she had not seen Sophia since November 2019, two years before her death.

But a report from integrated care director Irvine Muronzi said a bigger problem was the high use of substitutes and on-call staff.

After her previous care coordinator went on sick leave on August 8, Sophia was on the unassigned list until October 25, when Ms. Ogunnusi took over her file.

In reality, the court heard that it was not until November 8 that Ms. Ogunnusi read it, after having been on induction and working on her caseload.

This left Sophia unassigned for 10 weeks, during which service staff, dealing primarily with emergencies and high-risk cases due to the pandemic, were in charge of her case.

They didn’t notice when she didn’t show up for an injection on October 26, the inquest heard.

This was because at her last contact with psychiatric support on October 12, her next appointment was not scheduled.

Muronzi admitted the team had been through a “difficult time” and was “struggling” to keep services running.

But he agreed that staff should have flagged missed appointments with the police sooner.

Dr Radcliffe concluded that Sophia died of fatal ketoacidosis, but said: “We were unable to provide the answers the family was seeking.”

She added: “It is not possible to say whether an earlier follow-up on his attendance would have altered the result.”

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