Disgust at dying man’s treatment
Hospital admits ‘poor judgement’ after patient sent to hospice in taxi. By Samesh Mohanlall.
A dying man was bundled into a wheelchair taxi by hospital staff and sent to a hospice hours before he died.
Friends say Philip Wakefield, 58, was ‘‘robbed’’ of a dignified death when he was discharged from Timaru Hospital on December 11 because they were running out of beds.
Eric and Barbara Solomon say Wakefield was in no condition to leave the hospital, but was put into a taxi in his wheelchair and taken to the South Canterbury Hospice. He died later that night, and the hospital admitted it made a poor judgement call.
The hospital also acknowledged nursing staff involved were concerned about Wakefield on the night but did not speak up.
Wakefield, who lived alone and was in the final stages of stomach cancer, was found by Eric Solomon in very poor health a few days before he died.
‘‘He was struggling for breath and his stomach was blown up, so I called the ambulance and we followed him in,’’ Eric said.
His condition deteriorated, and he was sent to a hospice a few days later.
‘‘We are disgusted that a dying man can be shipped off into a taxi, sent to hospice because apparently . . . they needed a bed,’’ Barbara said.
After Wakefield’s death, the Solomons laid a formal complaint with the South Canterbury District Health Board (SCDHB). A meeting was held with hospital management who offered a ‘‘halfhearted apology’’, Barbara said.
‘‘We were livid. They apologised to us in the meeting but that’s still not good enough. To me they are just brushing this under the carpet. I’d like to see to it that this never happens again to anybody,’’ she said.
‘‘The staff at the hospice were absolutely appalled he was sent there in a taxi. They said he should’ve been left where he was at the hospital.’’
District health board chief executive Nigel Trainor said: ‘‘We can confirm we have been working with Mr and Mrs Solomon and encourage them to continue this dialogue with us.’’
Timaru Hospital is also in the gun for discharging patients when it shut down a ward temporarily over the festive season, creating a ‘‘harrowing experience’’ for one 92-year-old woman.
Christine Collingwood’s mother, Ngarita Belsea, was admitted with a fractured back after a fall on December 7.
Collingwood, who lives in Blenheim, said her mum was discharged a week later on December 14 – far too early, in Collingwood’s opinion.
Three days later, the elderly woman had to be taken back to hospital in an ambulance.
Collingwood, who has now moved her mum to a rest home in Blenheim, believed it happened because the staff were trying to keep patient numbers down.
There was no record of Collingwood laying a formal complaint to the SCDHB, Trainor said.
‘‘We invite Colleen Collingwood, as we do anyone who experiences something that doesn’t feel right, to share their feedback with us so we can work together to achieve an outcome that makes our health system stronger.’’