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"Poor awareness of visiting at other service providers"

About: Ipswich Hospital / Trauma and orthopaedics

(as a relative),

My father died last month, and whilst going through earlier documents I have relived the awful experiences at Ipswich Hospital during the pandemic. I decided it was important to record them, because communication is still poor between the hospital and families, it's long been a theme. In fact mum was inpatient recently and without our fabulous care agency we would have once again slipped through the gaps of discharge planning. We should never forget the way patients were treated during the pandemic, it must never, ever happen again. 

After a hideous experience with Ipswich Hospital in 2020 when Dad was last inpatient, he was admitted to Ipswich Hospital again after a fall the following year when he broke his hip. In fact, my mum spent a night with him in pain, too scared to call for help after the atrocious experience at the hands of the hospital the previous year, under the pretext of Covid.

He was admitted to Needham Ward and a hip replacement performed. 

This meant a huge burden for my then 82-year-old mother, who was vulnerable and frail herself. Exhausted from walking to the ward each day, she ended up having a fall at the end of his second week. As a result, and after no improvement physically in dad, an assessment bed in a care home was recommended. Mum was desperate to have him home, but we persuaded her he would soon be home and an assessment was the best thing to see what his care needs were.

Needham Ward promised she would be able to visit him each day, the same as in the hospital. I had already told the ward manager how emotionally dependent on him she was and how essential it was that she could visit him. We trusted the staff, as their communication and care had been excellent this admission, which was a leap of faith for us after his last experience.

Social services on the ward called me and told me that he had an NHS bed at a care home. They said they had tried to call my mum but I pointed out she was actually visiting on the ward at that time, and suggested they find and speak to her. Again, I said we would only agree to the move if visiting was the same as the hospital. I was told I would have to contact the home to book visits - which was expected, and I reiterated that Mum would need to be able to see him each day.

Dad was transferred, and whilst sitting in the ambulance with him waiting to leave Mum was given the number of the care home and promised she could visit him the next day. She called that afternoon, only to be told that they do not allow visits, despite vaccinations, despite negative Covid tests, despite PPE..... it was window visits only and there were no slots all weekend. The care home said the hospital do this all the time, and promise visits which can’t happen. Mum was beside herself, we were very, very angry and felt that we were told complete untruths. To lose him like this unprepared is unacceptable.

Mum was finally granted a window visit. An 82-year-old recovering from a fall had to scramble over bushes and brambles in full PPE (outside for goodness sake!!) to wave through a window. Dad didn’t even see her, she was utterly broken and that night suffered a nasty bout of her atrial fibrillation which has been stable for months. This experience with my dad made mum very unwell.

Families can only make informed decisions if given sufficient and accurate information, and can only cope with outcomes they have been a part of. We felt we had been misled us about mum's access to dad, which was totally unacceptable. 

I believe Covid was the least of dad's worries and the only thing he was protected against. Mum was an essential carer denied access and the care home reported he had shut down and no longer spoke after arriving there. 

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Responses

Response from Patient Experience Lead, East Suffolk and North Essex Foundation Trust 12 months ago
East Suffolk and North Essex Foundation Trust
Submitted on 25/04/2023 at 08:28
Published on Care Opinion at 08:28


I am sorry that your experience was not as expected and for the unnecessary stress and anxiety that this has caused you all.

We are always looking at ways that we can improve the experience for both patients and loved ones and would like to look into this further to ensure that we learn where we could and should have done better.

Could you please give me a call on 01473 702101 at your convenience.

Many thanks Steve Bruce - Patient Experience Team

Update posted by Twinsplustwo (a relative)

Thank you, this was some time ago and dad has recently passed away. I was keen to record this story as the NHS are trying to rewrite their role in our national COVID obsession, which I believe stole human rights from elderly individuals.

This story- and the millions of others like it, need to remain in the public domain so nothing like this happens again. The poor communication at ESNEFT is not much better now. Perhaps instead of “protecting itself” the Trust could focus on better management and communication, the cornerstones of good care.

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