Grandmother dies after picking up hospital infection
A grandmother has died after contracting a hospital infection – the latest such incident in the Glasgow area in recent weeks.
Mito Kaur, 63, picked up the mucor fungus at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH), where two patients recently died after contracting an infection found in pigeon droppings.
She passed away at 2am yesterday after her life support machine was switched off.
Since December, five people have died after contracting a hospital infection in the NHS Greater, Glasgow and Clyde region.
This death is the latest in a series of scandals to hit the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.
Last week a damning inspection report pinpointed poor standards of cleanliness at the £842m hospital, which opened in 2015. The inspection was ordered after patients became infected with a fungus linked to pigeon faeces.
One of those was a ten-yearold boy who died in December after contracting cryptococcus. An adult who had the same infection died the following month, but the hospital said cryptococcus was not a factor in her death.
Mrs Kaur’s lawyer Aamer Anwar issued a statement saying he has contacted the procurator fiscal’s office advising of the family’s concerns and their desire for a fully independent investigation to take place.
He added: “I understand that the Crown Office and procurator fiscal have instructed the police to obtain a full report, following which an independent post-mortem will be carried out.
“In recent days an unan- nounced inspectorate report into the management of infection and control following two previous deaths was published. This was a devastating indictment of the culture that existed at the QEUH.
“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.
“At this stage it would be premature to say anything further about the cause of death, but I would simply ask the privacy of a grieving family is fully respected.”
Mrs Kaur was taken to hospital after contracting flu, which then developed into pneumonia.