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Police seek answers in patient's fall from window

Investigators hope the autopsy and toxicology tests might shed some light on the Tampa man's death at Largo Medical Center.

By JACOB H. FRIES
Published July 13, 2006

LARGO - Detectives were still trying Wednesday to piece together how a man fell to his death from a fourth-floor window at Largo Medical Center.

Police had not ruled out suicide as a possibility, but said Dale Bertwell, 56, of Tampa, might have climbed through the window not fully understanding the danger.

Bertwell had recently made statements to family members that seemed to suggest he was not completely aware of his surroundings, police said.

Investigators said they hoped an autopsy and toxicology tests might shed some light on the incident.

Bertwell was admitted to the medical center July 5, said Largo police Detective Keith Barton, who would not elaborate on the reason for Bertwell's hospital visit. Then at 9:50 p.m. Monday , he fell from a window in his room and was pronounced dead a short time later.

Hospital CEO Ricky Satcher would not discuss Bertwell by name or the treatment he received but said nothing in his medical record indicated he was a danger to himself. He added that the hospital had investigated the incident and found no issues for concern.

"Of course, when you have something of this nature, you're going to look internally to make sure there were no missteps," Satcher said.

As required by code, the window in question had brackets limiting how far it could be opened, Satcher said. The brackets had been replaced in the last two years and showed no signs of having been tampered with before the incident.

Hospital staffing levels at the time also appear to have been more than adequate, Satcher added.

The hospital has reported the death to the state Agency for Health Care Administration, as is required by law, Satcher said.

A spokeswoman for the agency would not comment on what action, if any, was being taken.

Efforts Wednesday to reach Bertwell's family or to learn more about his background were unsuccessful.

[Last modified July 13, 2006, 00:08:53]