A care home boss struggling to cope with the pressures of coronavirus took his own life outside a police headquarters, an inquest heard today.
Vernon Hough was found inside his 4x4 vehicle which was parked-up in the staff car park of the Police Divisional HQ in Llay, Wales on Thursday, May 21.
A post-mortem examination found he had died from a gunshot wound and the firearm, which Mr Hough owned legally, was discovered nearby.
The grandfather and dad-of-four, of Cefn y Bedd, was a director at Gwastad Hall Nursing Home, in Wrexham, which he ran with his wife Helen.
At today's inquest in Ruthin, Mrs Hough said the 61-year-old had been struggling with the pressures of the Covid-19 pandemic on the care home.
He was finding it difficult to deal with seeing them suffering, securing PPE, trying to get medical help and getting oxygen to aid them, Mrs Hough said, but had "no inclination this was going to happen."
"The only relief at the time was oxygen for them," Mrs Hough said.
"And you couldn't get it unless it was prescribed."
She said care homes were still struggling to get oxygen for their residents amid the pandemic.
Mrs Hough added: "He wasn't afraid of catching it, he was afraid of spreading it."
The inquest heard that on May 21 a custody nurse had spotted Mr Hough's vehicle with the door open and the gun in view.
He alerted an inspector and then firearm officers were called in. But Mr Hough was discovered inside the vehicle dead.
Assistant coroner for North Wales East and Central David Pojur, recorded a conclusion of suicide.
He said: "This is a very sad death, when the pressure of working through the pandemic had overwhelmed your husband."
Mr Pojur said the situation had affected his mental health and "it became too much for him."
Following the inquest Mario Kreft MBE, the chairman of Care Forum Wales, said: "This is a tragic case and very sadly illustrates the enormous pressure care home owners and their staff have been under as a result of the pandemic.
"It’s been such a terribly dark time for people working in the sector and the sense of responsibility felt by Vernon toward the residents of Gwastad Hall clearly became too much for him to bear.
"Running a care home is an immense responsibility at the best of times, but the pressures of keeping the virus at bay were compounded by the shortage of essential supplies like oxygen and PPE which made things even more difficult."
He added: "We are all rightly mindful of the residents – and I am sure this played a part in this tragedy – but we also have to be mindful of the staff, managers and owners who operate these care homes. We also have a duty of care to them because sometimes their wellbeing is overlooked.”
"Our thoughts are very much with Vernon’s family, friends and staff at this extremely difficult time, not to mention the residents to whom he was utterly devoted."
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