WHY DID MY MUM DIE THIS WAY?

Inquiry call after winter care crisis

The tragic death of her mum has prompted a Wishaw woman to demand a public inquiry into the state of the NHS over the winter period.

Martine Nolan wants action to be taken following the heart-breaking passing of mother Margaret, 86. Martine and brother John’s ordeal began when they were forced to rush their mum to hospital on Christmas Day after waiting FOUR hours for an ambulance and continued until her death on January 13.

Well-known community activist Martine said: “Mum called me on Christmas Day and said she wouldn’t be going to church or coming from dinner. I knew something was wrong so I went over to her home in Houldsworth Court.

“I called NHS 24 and after being on hold for 25 minutes they said they would send an ambulance. Two hours went by and then I called 999.

“They said they would then send another ambulance. Another two hours went by and I could see that she was struggling to breathe.

“Myself and John then took the decision to take her to the hospital.”

After being released two days later, nurses told the family a full care package was put in place.

However, this was not the case and after several days of having hospital-at-home care, Margaret, was re-admitted to the hospital where she died the following night.

“I asked the doctors about a full care package and they said that would be taken care of but that didn’t happen,” said Martine.

“There was also supposed to be a blister pack for her medication but when John came back with the tablets there was no pack.

“After a few days of hospital-at-home, mum was going downhill so I asked for the consultant to come out and see her.

“He came out at around 6pm and said that she should be in the hospital but that he would send for an ambulance in the morning as there was a chance she could be lying on a trolley in the A&E department all night.”

Martine and John believe an inquiry into the state of the health service is long overdue.

They also worry how many other families have had a similar experience over the festive season with doctors, nurses and carers being stretched to the limit.

Martine said: “Over that period I was lucky that I was off work and that I lived locally so I could be there for mum.

“What about people on zero hours contracts? They couldn’t afford to do that.

“Before she took unwell, mum also had carers in to give her medication and I cared for my dad so I know how the care sector works and I was able to call people and sort things out.

“But what about elderly people who have no family or have relatives who live far away?

“There’s no way mum should have been sent home with no support but staff are under pressure to free up beds.

“There has to be a public inquiry into the state of the NHS over the winter.

“I worked in the oil industry as a safety engineer for 20 years and after the Piper Alpha disaster, the public inquiry made sure things changed for the better in the oil and gas industry.

“There is an inquiry into the cost of the trams in Edinburgh. Surely there has to be something done about the NHS.”

Brother John added: “What has been the resulting death toll over the past couple of months with situations like mum’s?

“There are no statistics for it. The nurses were great with us but you could tell they were so under pressure.

“There is just no give in the system.

“Martine was lucky to have some experience in the care system and in that situation. Some families are not so fortunate.”

Marion Mark, director of hospital services at University Hospital Wishaw, said: “We aim to provide the highest standard of care to all our patients and we regret any instance where someone feels we have not met this standard.

“We cannot provide details of individual cases due to patient confidentiality. However, we can confirm that we are aware of this case and we are in communication with Ms Nolan through our patient affairs department.

“We have also offered to arrange a meeting with Ms Nolan and the management team for the hospital.”