"My father's discharge"

My father recently attended RVH A&E via ambulance due to being bed bound currently. Around midday, my brother was informed my father sustained a fall whilst in A&E and sustained a small cut on his head.

Soon following this phone call, a further phone call was made to advise he was fit for discharge, with no discussion of scans or suspected head injuries until family had requested for this. During this phone call, the nurse asked if my father could walk and if we could arrange to pick him up. This is demonstrating the lack of communication within the hospital as my father requires ambulance to return home.

Due to other circumstances, he was discharged without my awareness the next day to his own home. When I seen him and the injuries to his face, I was in disbelief that they had been undermined so much. He sustained bruising around his left eye, abrasions requiring sutures and stitches to lower eye socket and above eyebrow, left eye bloodshot from trauma.

There was no discharge letter, no form of communication, no treatment plan/dressings and we weren’t even aware he had stitches until 5 days later. No referrals put through from RVH for district nursing to attend the home as this all had to be completed by care providers.

We still haven’t learned any context as to how my father sustained the fall. We understand the pressures of A&E, however we feel this has been neglected and unfair. We would have been more understanding if we had some information behind how this occurred or openness and honesty from the nurse who contacted. My father has Alzheimer’s disease and is anxious following this, and is unable to provide any information as to what happened.