My father was admitted to A & E recently via ambulance with chronic abdominal pain. At the age of 76, totally blind and with hearing loss this was a very frightening experience. The care, support and understanding he received was excellent. However I can't say the same when he was moved to St Helens ward. I was present when he was admitted and my mother was very clear informing the nursing staff of my dads blindness and hearing loss, that he was unable to move independently in an unfamiliar environment and would need to be spoken to clearly. They were informed of all his medication which my mother supplied. When I returned later in the day my Dad had not had any of his meds nor had he had a drink as someone had moved his jug and beaker and not told him where it was. This continued for another 24 hrs. By the next day they had moved him to another bay the furthest from the nurses station and a toilet. He was extremely dehydrated by this time. On mentioning to a staff member I was mortified to realise it had not been clearly passed on that my Dad had no sight. They realised he was visually impaired but assumed he had some functioning vision. Things did improve thanks to an auxiliary member of staff who had experience working with Blind people and to him we are very grateful. I appreciate staff are busy but I am talking about the very basic care needs of a Blind gentleman I'm afraid he was failed by St Helens Ward.
"Satff short falling in care of patients with..."
About: St Mary's Hospital (Newport) St Mary's Hospital (Newport) Newport PO30 5TG
Posted via nhs.uk
Do you have a similar story to tell?
Tell your story & make a difference ››
Responses
See more responses from St Mary's Hospital