Deaf man's hospital care failings
Published on 17 December 2013 11:00 AM
Age Cymru has today welcomed the acting Public Services Ombudsman's upholding of a complaint that a deaf man's hospital care was compromised by Nevill Hall Hospital.
The unnamed man's widow complained that her husband was not told that he may have developed cancer and that he was fitted with a catheter, despite him not being incontinent.
Commenting on the case of Mr W - whose identity has been kept anonymous, Age Cymru's Head of Policy & Public Affairs, Graeme Francis, says:
"The acting Public Services Ombudsman has identified a catalogue of errors in the care given to Mr W at Nevill Hall Hospital.
"These failings - which began when no one wrote down that Mr W had hearing problems, led to some very distressing experiences for Mr W and his family.
"Being catheterised when he wasn't incontinent and not being told that he may have developed cancer were catastrophic failings in Mr W's care.
"There can be no excuse for such serious lapses in patient care and dignity must be maintained at all times.
"Clearly, the care Mr W received was unacceptable and Age Cymru welcomes the Acting Public Services Ombudsman's upholding of this complaint.
"Everyone who enters a care setting should be able to do so safe in the knowledge that the care they receive will be of the highest quality."