Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
I’ll sue hospital over my Nikki’s death
Reality star’s mum hits out
THE devastated mum of tragic Nikki Grahame is considering legal action after a probe into the reality star’s death cleared medics of any failings.
Susan Grahame criticised the nurses who discharged Nikki, 38, just 24 hours before she lost her battle with anorexia.
She told how she begged them not to release the frail Big Brother contestant, who passed away alone at her North London home.
An internal review by Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said it had “not identified any shortfalls in care which might have influenced the outcome”.
But Susan, 67, said she may now take legal action to challenge the findings and force a fresh investigation into Nikki’s care.
“I don’t want this to happen to anyone else,” she said.
Susan, from Bridport, Dorset, said Nikki “should never have been discharged” from hospital last April.
She claimed her daughter had collapsed in front of nurses just two days before leaving. And she accused doctors of being unable to cope with her care – claiming it was “too much trouble”.
Susan said: “I was there for two weeks with Nikki. Each day, I told the nurses she couldn’t go home.
“Her father David, who was dying at the time, told them if they let her go, she would die – and she did.
“She had a BMI of 10. Her skeleton was breaking up. But they let her go because she could walk up the stairs.
“Nikki was so determined, she would have crawled up those stairs.
“I was in despair when she was discharged. I said, ‘You can’t let her go – look at the state of her’.”
No inquest was required into Nikki’s death as a doctor recorded it was from anorexia.
Susan said: “When a doctor trains for seven years, he gets an hour-anda-half of training in eating disorders.
“Money needs to go into specialist training for this sort of thing. It’s key.”
I told the nurses she couldn’t go home... her BMI was 10 ON THE BATTLE TO GET NIKKI HEALTHY
The minister for Rough Sleeping is our MP... he ain’t doing a good job WHO HAS SPENT TIME ON STREETS
I slept in a public toilet at –13C... it was horrible but at least it had a door KARL BERGMANN
years on the streets after a bereavement. He found shelter in bus stops, bin sheds, bushes and old cars before being helped by Louisa this year.
And he estimates up to 100 people a night still sleep rough in the town. Wayne said: “It’s a big problem but if you don’t look, it’s easier to ignore.”
Thomas Harrison, 41, has been sleeping on the streets on and off while battling a drug addiction.
He told how some rough sleepers even see crime as an “incentive” – offering the hope of going to prison, where they can be looked after.
Last month, local Tories told how former rough sleepers in the West Midlands had “praised a pilot scheme aimed at tackling homelessness for helping them turn their lives around”.
Andy Street, the West Midlands Conservative mayor, said the £9.6million pilot helped 515 people off the streets, including 102 in Walsall. Despite that, funding for the project is yet to be agreed beyond next March.
Over in the Surrey Heath constituency of Levelling Up and Housing Secretary Mr Gove, homes are increasingly out of reach. The average monthly rent of a one-bedroom flat in Camberley is £965, while housing benefit for the area is only £700.50 a month.
Those out of work must top up their rent from £324.84 universal credit, leaving only £60 for food and bills for a month – just £2 a day. Charlene Edmeades, 40, a former brickie, has been on and off the street since she was 16. She said: “I’ve been a victim of circumstance due to exes and the situations they’ve put me in.
“You feel very vulnerable out on the street… and lonely. Very lonely.” With help from charity The Hope Hub, Charlene is currently in temporary accommodation.
She said: “Everything I’m applying for, they’re saying because of the cost of living I won’t be able to afford it. I’d say to Boris [Johnson] or Michael Gove to come and spend 12 hours on the street and see if they can handle it. We’ll swap places.
“Until they’ve been through it themselves I don’t think they have a clue.”
Mr Gove himself also lives in supported accommodation – a £25million grace-and-favour home in Westminster funded by the taxpayer, with two dining rooms and a ballroom.
Another of his constituents, former factory foreman Karl Bergmann, 50, lost his home in 2008 when the recession cost him his job.
Homeless for over a decade, he is now in supported accommodation.
He said: “I’ve slept rough in −13C. I thought about going to the hospital but I didn’t want to bother them so I slept in a 24-hour toilet. It was horrible but at least I could shut the door.”
Now he fears many more will soon take his place on the streets. Karl said: “Universal Credit should be different in different parts of the country – some places are cheaper to live.
Mags Mercer, CEO of The Hope Hub, said: “Throughout the pandemic we’ve seen a downward spiral in the mental health of homeless and vulnerable people, and their ability to cope with extra pressure on their pockets and living with uncertainty.” A Government
spokesman said: “Our commitment to ending rough sleeping by the end of this Parliament remains.
“Figures show the number of rough sleepers has fallen in every region of England to an eight-year low overall.
“We’ve given councils £2billion over the next three years to build on the success of the Homelessness Reduction Act and to end rough sleeping.”
But homeless charity St Mungo’s said the Government still risks failure. Chief executive Steve Douglas said: “Michael Gove has a huge brief but this mustn’t slip from his priority list.”