Dementia patient may have to move 130 miles for care
AFAMILY fears their Welsh-speaking grandfather will end up distressed and isolated if he is moved to a hospital 130 miles away in England because there is no care available for him in North Wales.
Thomas Griffith Jones, 82, suffers from a type of dementia that his family say causes challenging behaviour.
Having been moved back and forth between Ysbyty Cefni in Llangefni and Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor, Betsi Cadwaladr Health Board are now proposing to move him to a hospital in Stafford as they say there are no appropriate facilities for him in North Wales.
Mr Jones is a first-language Welsh-speaker and it is said that due to his condition, the language plays a crucial role in his care.
Gwerfyl Roberts, health spokesperson for Cymdeithas yr Iaith, has described the situation as “frightful and totally unacceptable”.
She added: “It is not fair for someone in such a vulnerable condition to have to move so far from home and to receive care and treatment from staff who do not speak his natural language.
“How many more patients find themselves in this position? This raises serious questions about individual human rights.”
Cymdeithas yr Iaith has since complained to the Health Board and the Welsh Language Commissioner about the matter.
Mr Jones’ granddaughter, Louise Renshaw, has also called for the move to be stopped.
“All the family are really worried about him and what could happen,” she said.
“We are a big family who care about him, and there is always someone beside him.
“We are waiting to have a meeting so we can sort this out, as moving from Anglesey to Stafford is too far.
“This could have an impact on him, his family and my grandmother.”
Mr Jones has been married to his wife Eileen for 62 years.
With six children, 16 grandchildren and over 30 great-grandchildren, Louise described her grandfather as the “perfect family man”.
She said: “He is a kind and gentle individual, who is willing to help out anybody.
“When we were growing up, he spent so much time with us.”
Ms Renshaw has seen the positive impact the
Welsh language has on her grandfather, especially through his dementia care.
She said: “The care he is having right now is really good, and I think the use of the language has contributed to that.
“At times, his behaviour can be quite challenging but when he is with us, speaking his native language, he’s fine.”
A spokesman for Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board said: “Patients who had been assessed on their Older Persons Mental Health Assessment Units are either discharged home with a suitable care package or transferred to an appropriately staffed and skilled nursing home to meet their individually assessed needs.
“It is sometimes necessary to commission external providers to meet the complex needs of people who have a diagnosis of dementia and require very specialist support. Where these patients’ needs cannot be safely met in a nursing home in North Wales, we look at suitable providers who can deliver the very specialist care required as close to that person’s home as possible.
“As a result, a very small number of patients every year are placed in specialist placements outside of North Wales.
“We recognise how unsettling this can be for patients and families, and these decisions are only ever taken as a last resort, once all alternative arrangements have been exhausted.
“We employ a specialist team who monitor and review the care of these patients while they receive care at specialist placements.
“As soon as it is clinically appropriate to do so, these patients are repatriated to care homes closer to their home.”