A BMW driver has been jailed for six months for crashing into and causing the death of a man who got out of his car to tend to an injured deer on a country road.
Geoffrey Saville turned around when he saw the deer and parked his VW van on Midville Road, Stickney, in front of where the animal lay on the road.
Mr Saville parked in the opposite carriageway to where he was going and was facing any oncoming vehicles.
He had his headlights and hazard warning lights on but as he picked up the deer he was hit by a BMW which drove into him.
He was thrown into a roadside ditch. His vehicle was pushed off the road with his wife Jill still in the front passenger seat.
56-year-old Mr Saville, who lived nearby, suffered fatal head and chest injuries.
The BMW driver David Eldridge, 69, of Old Fen Lane South, Scrub Hill, near Coningsby, admitted a charge of causing death by careless driving as a result of the incident on February 13, 2019.
Eldridge was jailed for six months and banned from driving for two years and three months. He was ordered to pass an extended retest before being allowed his licence back.
Recorder Graham Huston, passing sentence, told him: “I have given a great deal of anxious consideration as to whether the sentence might be suspended. I have concluded that there are not sufficient grounds for me to do so.
“You have not seen a lit vehicle with hazard lights flashing in your carriageway until you were so close to it that a collision could not be avoided.
“It was a lit obstruction. The road was dead straight. The weather was clear and there was good visibility.
“The prosecution case is that you became distracted by something inside or outside your vehicle. It is the only explanation as to what happened.
“It may be because there was a young puppy on the back seat. It may be you fell asleep. Something stopped you from seeing a lit obstruction in your carriageway. It was not a momentary distraction.”
Daren Samat, prosecuting, said the incident happened as Mr Saville was driving home with his wife after visiting his sister in Norfolk.
Eldridge, who had two pints of beer earlier in the day and later had a glass of red wine with his tea, was driving at around 30 to 40 mph.
Mr Samat said: “It was an open stretch of road. For over 100 yards the defendant should have seen the Volkswagen. It was dark. The weather is described as fine and clear.
“Mrs Saville remained in the car with her seat belt on.
“Mr Saville walked towards the animal. It must have been alive because he knelt down and stroked it. Mrs Saville noticed the lights of a car coming towards them. R Savile was in the process of lifting the deer.”
Mr Samut said that Mrs Saville shouted a warning to her husband but he may not have heard because the car door and windows were closed.
The approaching BMW then drove straight into the Volkswagen.
Passing motorists and a neighbour who heard the collision went to assist and a 999 call was made.
Mr Saville was found nearby. He died as a result of his injuries.
Eldridge was given a blood test which showed he had 21 mgs of alcohol per 100 mls of blood which was below the legal limit of 80 mgs of alcohol.
When Eldridge was interviewed, he claimed that the lights on the VW only came on as he approached it but the court was told that the headlights and hazard warning lights were on throughout the time.
Jill Saville, in a victim impact statement, said she has been left devastated by the loss of her husband and has since suffered post-traumatic stress disorder.
She said: “On February 13, 2019 my whole world fell apart. I’ve lost my best friend, my soul mate and everything. There will always be a massive hole where Geoff was.”
Dominic Pitter, in mitigation, said Eldridge was unable to explain what happened.
“If he had seen the lights he would have avoided a collision. He must have reacted to something because he started to brake.”
He said that Eldridge was full of remorse for what happened.
“This is somebody who has expressed genuine remorse. For some reason he did not see it.
“He suffered serious injuries himself as a result and he was hospitalised for five days. He now suffers ill-health.”
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GP surgeries across Greater Lincolnshire are feeling the impact of an increased number of missed appointments after suffering 23,549 no-shows in just one month.
The most recent data from the local NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups shows that there were 16,000 missed appointments in November 2021 in Lincolnshire alone. In North East Lincolnshire, there were 3,907 missed appointments in the same month.
In North Lincolnshire, there were 3,642 missed appointments in the same period, which was up by about 600 on the previous month. Dr Satpal Shekhawat, Medical Director of North Lincolnshire CCG, said this comes to nearly 600 hours of clinical work and equates to about 15 full-time GPS.
The total number of missed appointments at GP surgeries for the whole of East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire for November was 38,584. This also includes 7,966 in Hull and 7,069 in East Yorkshire.
Dr Shekhawat told BBC East Yorkshire & Lincolnshire: “It’s a double loss for us. One, we’ve lost that time we could have seen someone else, and that person who wanted an appointment, their problem hasn’t been dealt with so they’re going to contact us again for another appointment.”
Cheryl Gagg, Medical Secretary at Kirton Lindsey and Scotter Surgery, said: “From first thing in the morning we open at eight o’clock, the phone lines ring non-stop, and generally within the first hour you can be booked up. It just wastes a lot of time. There are patients waiting for those appointments that we may have had to turn away for that day, it is incredibly frustrating.”
Patients are being urged to use the NHS app or email so fewer appointments go to waste.
A community Macmillan clinical nurse specialist based in Deeping and Bourne has been given the prestigious title of Queen’s Nurse, by community nursing charity The Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI).
Gwen Eldred from Boston, who works for Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (LCHS), received the title after over 30 years of service to nursing, with the last 20 years in Lincolnshire.
However, the title is not an award for past service but indicates a commitment to high standards of patient care, learning and leadership.
Nurses who hold the title benefit from developmental workshops, bursaries, networking opportunities, and a shared professional identity.
Dr Crystal Oldman CBE, Chief Executive of the QNI said: “On behalf of the QNI I would like to congratulate Gwen and welcome her as a Queen’s Nurse.
“Queen’s Nurses serve as leaders and role models in community nursing, delivering high quality health care across the country. The application and assessment process to become a Queen’s Nurse is rigorous and requires clear commitment to improving care for patients, their families and carers.
“We look forward to working with Gwen and all other new Queen’s Nurses who have received the title this year.”
Gwen has worked as a Community Macmillan nurse in palliative and end of life care for 10 years and spent the last four years in the Deeping and Bourne.
She enjoys the working together with other community services, helping them to develop their own skills and experience, as well as making a difference and having an impact on the patient’s and carer’s experience. She believes in people having a choice in life and in death, and acts as an advocate to support them to make their own decisions around their care needs and wishes.
Gwen has worked hard to develop her knowledge undertaking educational courses, alongside increasing her vocational experience, to improve the care she is able to give her patients.
Gwen said: “I am honoured and proud to receive this title. I am passionate about my role in nursing and helping people. Every day is a new experience, even after all these years.
“The Queen’s Nurse programme brings together community nurses and has a wealth of learning and leadership opportunities, so I am looking forward to developing my professional skills further.”
Gwen attended a virtual celebratory awards ceremony last month and received her special badge, certificate, and lanyard through the post.
Gwen’s manager, Kay Howard who provided evidence for her award said: “Gwen definitely deserves this accolade. She often goes above and beyond expectations to deliver high quality personalised care for her patients and she is always looking to make improvements that benefit patients too.”
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