Hospital failed in their care of man
HOSPITAL bosses in Glasgow have been ordered to apologise to the family of an elderly man who died after they “begged” staff to help him.
Scottish Public Services Ombudsman Rosemary Agnew said there were a number of failings in his care at Glasgow Royal Infirmary in October 2016.
She added she was making a public report on his daughter’s complaint, “because I consider it is in the wider public interest”.
The man, identified only as Mr A in the report, was admitted to the hospital on September 30, 2016, after losing weight and complaining of stomach pains.
On October 5 he had surgery to remove sections from his intestine, and afterwards was cared for in the high dependency unit, where his family said the care was “excellent”.
But when he was transferred to the enhanced recovery area on October 12, the Ombudsman said staff “failed to act” in response to the family’s concerns, with the report noting the man’s daughter was “begging” for medical help.
His condition deteriorated and he was transferred back to high dependency, with doctors carrying out another operation. Despite this, he died on October 21.
The Ombudsman said: “Had Mr A been assessed and examined proactively by an experienced doctor earlier, it was likely that they would have recognised his deterioration.
“Had this happened, there would have been a greater chance of survival.”
A spokeswoman for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: “We will be writing to the family to reiterate our sincere condolences and to apologise for the clear failings in this patient’s care.”