Daily Record

Gran fights for life in yet another hospital infection Family ‘only learn of bug from website’

CRISIS AT FLAGSHIP SITE

- BY ANNIE BROWN

A GRAN is fighting for life after becoming the latest patient to contract a deadly hospital infection.

Mito Kaur, 63, picked up the mucor fungus at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, where two patients recently died from an infection found in pigeon droppings.

Since December, five people have died from hospital infections in the Glasgow area.

Last night, Mito’s family said they only learned of the latest infection from the hospital’s website.

THE family of gran Mito Kaur only found out she had a potentiall­y fatal fungal infection after reading about it on the public website of Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

It was after the 63-year-old’s daughter Raj read a press release saying two patients had the mucor infection that the family questioned doctors. They confirmed Mito was one of them.

Raj said: “I thought surely that can’t be mum. Surely they would have told us but they hadn’t. They released the informatio­n publicly before we knew it was her. When we asked the doctors, they said it was mucor and it was potentiall­y fatal.

Raj, 41, said: “We were in a complete state of shock. It was a terrible way to find out. We worship our mother.

“It was awful to find out she had contracted something in hospital which could kill her.”

The press release on January 22 revealed the mucor infection, while referring to two further cases of a separate fungus, cryptococc­us, which is linked to pigeon droppings.

Three days later, the hospital admitted cryptococc­us was a factor in deaths of 10-year-old boy and a 73-year-old woman.

Mito’s family claim there have been failures in transparen­cy and keeping them informed.

Her son Bobby said: “Throughout this we have been losing confidence in what we have been told. One minute they would tell us she was improving, then another that she was getting worse. It has been so stressful.

“Now we don’t know what to believe. We don’t want a cover-up. We want to know exactly what is causing our mother to be so ill.”

They were speaking out as it was announced a Holyrood committee is to examine hospital safety following the hospital deaths.

The Crown Office is investigat­ing both deaths at the £842million flagship hospital.

The Scottish Government has previously announced an independen­t external review following the fatalities.

Mito was admitted to the QUEH on January 7 with flu-like symptoms and pain in her chest.

She was diagnosed with pneumonia two days later and influenza was found in her lungs so she was given antibiotic­s.

By January 11, she seemed to be stable and doing well but her condition began to deteriorat­e in the coming days.

She was moved from a room in ward seven to the intensive care unit but moved again to the open part of the ward.

Her previous intensive care unit was sealed off before the family had yet been told she had mucor.

The panelling from the walls was stripped off to explore the possibilit­y of a leak being the source of the fungus.

Mito’s breathing was so laboured she was fitted with a tracheosto­my and a tube was inserted into her windpipe.

When the family were finally told what the fungal infection was, they were advised it is potentiall­y fatal for those like Mito with weakened immune systems.

The infection caused Mito’s brain to swell and, after rallying briefly, her condition deteriorat­ed again and her heart became inflamed.

Before she had contracted flu, Mito had been a happy, healthy mother of four

and grandmothe­r of nine. Bobby said she was the “heart” of the family and her children were so devoted to her they have been taking shifts to stay at the hospital.

He added: “My mother is a wonderful person. She is always smiling and she only thinks of others and never herself.

“She is the epitome of selfless. She is so loving and kind. She is everything to us and her grandchild­ren. We are heartbroke­n at the thought of losing her.”

Mito, a shop worker, was planning to retire in March to spend more time with her family and considerin­g a trip to India.

By February 6, Mito had deteriorat­ed and, two days later, the family were told she would certainly die and should consider when they wanted to have her life support switched off.

When the family said they would not agree, the medics warned them that, without a power of attorney, the matter could be taken out of their hands.

But the family say Mito is conscious and responded to them when she was asked to blink yes or no.

A consultant treating Mito admitted he had only dealt with one case of mucor and now the family want the hospital to search internatio­nally for greater expertise on the infection. The family have not been told where or if the fungus is still in Mito’s body.

Bobby said: “We just have no idea what the truth is. All we want is to know how this happened and that the best help possible is being sought for our mother.”

Lawyer for the family Aamer Anwar said Mito’s family felt “betrayed” by the QEUH. He said: “The family are concerned they needed to wait to find out from the media about their mother being suspected of contractin­g the ‘hospital-based fungal infection’.

“They appreciate that many of the medical profession­als have tried desperatel­y to save their mother’s life but this hospital’s management stands accused of failing in its duty of care and presiding over a culture of secrecy.

“Sadly, any confidence and trust the family once had in the QUEH rapidly disappeare­d. The family also want to ensure no other patient or family is ever kept in the dark or has to suffer in the way they have.”

An NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde spokesman insisted the family were informed of the infection three days before the issue of the press release.

He said the family were regularly updated on their mum’s condition and a probe is onging into the source of the infection.

 ??  ?? ON LIFE SUPPORT Gran Mito is critically ill after getting fungal infection
ON LIFE SUPPORT Gran Mito is critically ill after getting fungal infection
 ??  ??
 ??  ?? MUCH LOVED Mito’s the heart of her family
MUCH LOVED Mito’s the heart of her family
 ??  ?? CLOSE-KNIT Mito at the centre of things at a gathering of her adoring family
CLOSE-KNIT Mito at the centre of things at a gathering of her adoring family
 ??  ?? ISOLATION ROOMHospit­al staff seal off intensive care unit where Mito Kaur was being cared for before the family had been told she had mucor.
ISOLATION ROOMHospit­al staff seal off intensive care unit where Mito Kaur was being cared for before the family had been told she had mucor.

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