An inquest has heard that a man found in an alleyway outside Southendhospital died from traumatic injuries.

Aaron Deeley, who was 43 and from Canvey Island, had been admitted to hospital in January following an attempted overdose, and was then moved to the third-floor acute medical unit where he was treated for severe liver damage.

He had been a long-term sufferer of depression.

According to Mr Deeley’s family, he was then left unsupervised and, after suffering from hallucinations, smashed a hospital window before falling to his death.

An inquest into Mr Deeley’s death was opened at Essex Coroner’s Court in Chelmsford on Friday, where coroner’s officer Andrew Kimche declared multiple traumatic injuries were the cause of death.

In a statement, Mr Kimche confirmed the 43-year-old died in an alleyway between two buildings at Southend Hospital after he took a mixed overdose.

The coroner’s officer said Mr Deeley had been found in the early hours of Friday, January 14, and did not respond to attempts at resuscitation.

A date for the full inquest into Mr Deeley’s death is yet to be confirmed, according to area coroner Michelle Brown, who said the case will be passed on to the complex inquests team.

She said full autopsy and toxicology reports were yet to be received. 

The Canvey father-of-four leaves behind wife Michelle and four children – Hunter, 20, Alexis, 14, Destiny, 11, and Jason, 10.

Mr Deeley’s sister-in-law, Louise Collins, had previously said in a tribute that his death had been a tragic loss to the entire family.

She said: “My sister didn’t have to worry for anything, she had Aaron and he was just her and the children’s whole world.

He didn’t have a single bad bone in his body, he was just an amazing man who absolutely adored his kids and his wife.

“We can’t even begin to describe the loss.”

NHS bosses have since installed safety bars on the windows at Southend Hospital to prevent a similar incident happening – a move which Mr Deeley’s wife Michelle said made her “feel sick”.

credit Echo