Open finding for reclusive man dead in unit for two years AN open finding has been handed down by the coroner over the death of a 75-year-old cancer patient whose body lay in a public housing unit for two years. Robert Roll's remains were found slumped in the bedroom of his Wellington Street unit on July 7, 2011 - two years after he discharged himself from Royal Perth Hospital, despite being diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. The elderly man - who had for many years been reclusive - was pain free and insisted he wanted to maintain his independence. Home-based care arrangements were not made for Mr Roll because he had discharged himself. Nurses from in-home health and care provider Silver Chain visited Mr Roll once, but did not return because he refused their services. Two neighbours claimed the Department of Housing did not follow up their concerns about Mr Roll's overflowing mailbox and a foul smell in the complex. But when another neighbour later contacted the department about the mail, housing officers made the grim discovery. On Friday, coroner Barry King concluded Mr Roll must have died between July 22 and October 20, 2009, but given the state of his body when it was found, it was not possible to determine a cause of death. "It is not clear whether the lack of follow up of the deceased was due to systemic gaps, an oversight or a conscious policy," Mr King said. I am therefore not in a position to offer a formal recommendation. In any event, it appears to me self evident that there would be a benefit in hospital social work departments having effective systems of referral of patients to community service providers together with clear lines of communication. Such systems should include contingency plans for instances where patients are unwilling to accept the services of a community service provider or where that service is disrupted. Those contingency plans might include welfare checks by police or Department of Housing officers, and stipulate which agency was to contact them, Mr King said.