Hospital infection death family call for investigation
Gran was admitted after flu became pneumonia
THE family of a gran who died after contracting a hospital infection have called for an independent investigation into her death.
Mito Kaur picked up the mucor fungus at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, where two patients recently died after contracting an infection found in pigeon droppings.
Mito, who would have turned 64 today, passed away at 2am yesterday after her life support machine was switched off.
She had been admitted to hospital in January with flu, which had developed into pneumonia.
Last night, the family’s lawyer Aamer Anwar said they had been left “devastated” and now want to know the exact cause of Mito’s death.
Anwar said: “Mito’s family are devastated at her loss. Throughout her children’s lives she had been selfless and unconditional in her love.
“For the last two months, the family have had serious concerns about what had happened to their mother, with questions that remain unanswered.”
Anwar said he had contacted the Procurator Fiscal’s Office demanding a fully independent investigation.
He added the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal have instructed the police to obtain a full report. An independent post mortem will follow.
He added: “The family are deeply grateful to the many staff who tried so hard to save their mother’s life but they remain highly concerned at the role of senior management and demand a full robust and independent inquiry take place.”
She then picked up a mucor fungus and the family was told it was potentially fatal. It caused Mito’s brain to swell and, after rallying briefly, her condition deteriorated again and her heart became inflamed.
By February 6, Mito had deteriorated and two days later, the family were told she would certainly die and should consider when they wanted her to have life support switched off.
Her son Bobby had described her as the “heart” of the family.
Since December, five people have died after contracting a hospital infection in the Glasgow area.
Mito’s death is the latest in a series of scandals to hit Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.
Last week, a damning inspection report pinpointed poor standards of cleanliness at the £842million hospital, which opened in 2015.
Anwar said the report was a “devastating indictment of the culture that existed at the QEUH”. The inspection was ordered by Health Secretary Jeane Freeman after patients became infected with a fungus linked to pigeon faeces.
One was a 10-year-old boy, who died in December after contracting cryptococcus.
An NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde spokeswoman said they were unable to comment.