Elderly hospital patients ‘suffering in silence’
‘No excuse’ for this poor standard of care, says MP
When things go wrong, too many are suffering in silence. Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Rob Behrens.
A YORKSHIRE MP has hit out at “sub-standard” NHS hospital care after an ombudsman found too many older people are “suffering in silence”.
One in three family members said they had been concerned about the hospital care of an elderly relative, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) found.
In one case, a patient was forced to use “adult nappies” even though he was able to use a commode as no one was available to help him, and in another, a man called 999 from his hospital ward after he lay stricken on the floor, unnoticed, for 75 minutes.
Other examples include an elderly patient left in soiled clothes for two days and nights; pain relief being “overlooked” and a patient left overnight in a corridor on an A&E bed.
Labour MP for York Central, Rachael Maskell, who chairs the all-party parliamentary group for older people and ageing, said: “I am completely appalled that older people are receiving substandard care – there is no excuse for it. We know that services are stretched but everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.”
The PHSO and the website Gransnet surveyed 600 people who had an elderly family member who had stayed in hospital overnight in the past year.
Of those who said they were concerned about the care of a relative, 58 per cent said they felt compelled to complain. Among those who were concerned but did not complain, almost a fifth said they were worried about the impact that complaining would have on the care and treatment of their relative.
The ombudsman said the NHS needs to make clear to patients that their care will not be compromised if they, or a relative, makes a complaint.
A previous report from the PHSO highlighted that many older people are afraid to raise the alarm when something goes wrong in their care and worry about what will happen to them if they do.
The PHSO said there are far fewer complaints from older people than would be expected given their high usage of NHS services.
“The NHS is a lifeline for many vulnerable older people but, when things go wrong, too many are suffering in silence,” said PHSO’s Rob Behrens.
“I want people to be confident to complain, know their rights, and speak up when things go wrong so that the NHS can learn from mistakes and improve services for others.
“NHS staff should make patients and their loved ones aware of how to complain, point them to available support, and make it absolutely clear that their future care will not be compromised.”
In Leeds, the city’s Healthwatch has been working with the NHS and adult social care to make raising a complaint “as inclusive and as easy as possible”.
Chief executive Tanya Matilainen, said: “It is important that people feel confident that they can have their voice heard without fear that it would affect the services they use.”
THE “BASIC human rights” of older people in hospital are not being adhered to, a Yorkshire MP has said, after a survey showed one in three family members have been concerned about the care of an elderly relative.
Some of the distressing incidents raised with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman and Gransnet include nurses laughing at a man who had fallen out of bed, an elderly woman being “groped” by a male patient who staff said got “confused”, and patients being forced to use “adult nappies” when they could have used a commode.
Labour MP for York Central Rachael Maskell was elected as the chairman of the all-party parliamentary group for older people and ageing in July.
“Lots of older people are not receiving the standard of care that we might expect,” she said. “People have no control over what is happening to them in what can be a frightening environment, and basic human rights are not being adhered to.”
As part of her new role, she plans to devise an enquiry looking into the rights of older people.
“We often hear about the rights of children under the UN Convention but there isn’t such a convention for older people, and I think it is absolutely crucial,” Ms Maskell said. “In Wales, they have set up a commission for older people and I want to see the same here in England. We can talk as much as we want about there needing to be change in the system but unless there is a baseline of rights for older people we have nothing to compare to.
“Older people deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, not just in the health service but in other areas too, such as social care and housing, and this needs to be enshrined at a regulatory level.”
Shelagh Marshall, chairman of Future Years, the Yorkshire and Humber Forum on Ageing, was a North Yorkshire county councillor for 28 years and has a wealth of experience dealing with complaints about the treatment of older people in hospital.
She said: “I am terrified of going into hospital because of the complaints I have received. I’ve heard of food being put down in front of someone, and it being taken away untouched – but the reason was because they were blind and couldn’t see it.
“A friend who was terminally ill had so many complaints but wouldn’t allow me to complain for him, from losing his prescription spectacles to falling using a zimmer and breaking his thigh.
“There ought to be a better way for people in hospital to make lower-level complaints. Older people feel vulnerable but not everybody is able to articulate it.”
Rachael Maskell MP, chairman of all-party parliamentary group for older people. People have no control over what is happening to them