Elderly ‘thrown out of lifeboat’
THE son of a Covid-19 victim says it is unforgivable that elderly people who had tested positive were knowingly transferred to care homes.
Grieving Alan Wightman, whose 88-year-old mother Helen died of the virus in May, has accused health chiefs of throwing elderly people “out of the lifeboat”.
It follows the shock revelation that 37 Covid-positive patients were moved to care homes, including six by NHS Tayside.
NHS Fife said fewer than five patients confirmed as having coronavirus were transferred to homes in the region but not until at least 14 days after the positive test.
It has not revealed which premises were involved but it said they were admitted safely.
Politicians have called for full disclosure, with Labour MSP Alex Rowley branding the move criminal and independent councillor Linda Holt accusing the Scottish Government of turning care homes into “death factories”.
Helen Wightman was a resident of Scoonie House in Leven, described by Alan as well run, with staff doing everything they could under difficult circumstances. “The blame lies far, far higher up the chain,” he said.
“It is disappointing this was allowed to happen and it should never have happened.
“Who decided it was a good idea to discharge a crowd of people who were either positive or exposed to the virus into a setting where there were already a lot of vulnerable people?
“The answer is nobody did. Nobody at Government or health board level thought we should act smarter in the middle of a global pandemic and some 2000 of our elderly people have paid the price. They threw our old people out of the lifeboat.
“They were in a protected area yet we threw them overboard to make way for others. I find it completely unforgivable.”
Alan, from Forfar, is a member of the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Group which has called for a public inquiry into the situation in care homes, where almost half of all Scotland’s coronavirus deaths occurred.