Mum’s degenerating because she has so little to live for now
A woman has claimed her elderly mum is being held in “solitary confinement” at a care home.
Catherine Murray, 80, is living in virtual isolation at The Grove Nursing Home in Inverurie, Aberdeenshire due to harsh Covid19 visiting restrictions.
Her daughter Rhona Stuart has criticised owners for leaving residents in their rooms for hours on end as their health declines.
She said: “I’ve watched mum’s wellbeing go down hill over the last nine months. It’s been horrific, she’s just degenerating.
“Before the pandemic I’d visit every day and the isolation is taking its toll.
“Previously, I was attending a limited number of distanced garden visits, but I stopped these because I could see how distressing it was in the cold.
“With the noise from the road she couldn’t hear a thing and the whole process was just confusing and upsetting her.
“There’s an indoor visiting area but it’s just a table with two metres in between. Now the home is in lockdown because a member of staff caught Covid. I bought Mum an iPad to talk to her every day. I was shocked that she just seems to be sitting in her room all the time. It’s solitary confinement.
“She sleeps all the time and she has lost a lot of weight. She’s being given nothing to live for because she doesn’t get to see her family.”
Nurse Rhona,
50, of Monymusk, Aberdeenshire, added: “I’ve tried complaining about the way mum has been treated.
“I just don’t think that keeping families locked out is fair. I support the Sunday Mail’s campaign for new laws to protect the rights of people to see their families.”
Grove Care Home said: “We are working closely with all residents and their families to ensure we can safely facilitate contact and have been in direct communication with Mrs Murray and her daughter over this.
“We understand the importance of visits and the much-needed contact with our residents.
“Essential visits remain fully supported in all of our care homes and we are committed to reuniting families as soon as this is permitted by government.”