Place mum died in was like a war zone.. she was scared and alone
PATRICIA WALLS’S STORY
The daughter of a Covid-19 victim has described the care home where her mum died as a “war zone” and demanded a public inquiry about the facility.
Patricia Walls, 78, was one of 23 residents who lost their lives in a coronavirus outbreak at Whitehills Care Home in East Kilbride.
Cat McRoberts has told how she found her mum slumped in bed on the day she died, with a piece of pizza lying in her lap.
She said: “Mum was frightened, scared and alone in her final week of life.
“She didn’t understand why she was locked in her room.
“The day before she died, she wasn’t even entitled to a palliative care bed. We called to try to get a special mattress but they said she didn’t have enough bed sores to justify it.
“The bed she was in only had a frame on one side. They shoved her against the wall so she couldn’t look out the window where I was allowed to look in.
“She was given no dignity and was hungry before she died. She deserved better. It was like a war zone. It was dirty. It wasn’t a nice place to be whatsoever. I feel like my mum deserved much better.
“I was allowed in to see her and found her in bed with a piece of pepperoni pizza lying on her lap. I’d been telling them for weeks she couldn’t eat solid food and needed yoghurts and scrambled egg – things easy to digest.
“But she was lying there sweating and clearly in distress with this pizza lying on her. She died a few hours after that.
“The feeling that she was completely let down is something I can’t shake off.”
Mum-of-two Patricia, a retired hotel worker, went into care in 2019 after developing vascular dementia.
Cat added: “After she died, she was put in a body bag then a sealed coffin. I wasn’t able to dress her or anything.
“My mum is marked down as having Covid but wasn’t tested – something I repeatedly asked for. We need to have a full inquiry because this can never be allowed to happen again.”
A spokesman for Whitehills said: “We have consistently and robustly followed the available guidance to safeguard the health and wellbeing of all our residents and staff. Whitehills has received several announced and unannounced inspections, including one from the Care Inspectorate, which endorsed the high quality of care being provided.”