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"Discharge of the elderly from hospital"

About: Forth Valley Royal Hospital / Elderly medicine

(as a carer),

Is there a laid down procedure for discharging elderly disabled patients from hospital?

My husband had a strome in April of this year and was very well cared for by your stroke ward for seven weeks.

He has been in and out of hospital on frequent occasions since and my problem is that on several occasions, the last one being a recent afternoon.

I have gone in to visit him, only to be told that he was being discharged. I never received a telephone call to bring in suitable outdoor clothing for him in order to get him home.

On the Tuesday afternoon I took in a t shirt and lightweight joggies which he prefers to wear in hospital rather than pajamas. I was then told he was being discharged. I had no outdoor coat or shoes with me obviously and had not brought his stick. We had to ask for a wheelchair and a blanket to put over him to get him out to my daughter's car. He has only the use of his right side and can shuffle with the use of his stick. I am his main carer at home along with council carers coming in morning and night.

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Responses

Response from Claire Copeland, Associate Medical Director, Ageing & Health, NHS Forth Valley 8 years ago
Claire Copeland
Associate Medical Director, Ageing & Health,
NHS Forth Valley

Consultant Geriatrician and Stroke Physician

Submitted on 30/12/2015 at 13:08
Published on Care Opinion at 15:21


picture of Claire Copeland

Dear Stressed wife,

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience regards your husbands recent admission to hospital. I'm sorry his return home was not the positive happy experience it should've been. It also sounds like you've both had a stressful time this past year.

I'd like to look into this in some more detail to see what happened. If you could contact Pauline Marland our Person Centred Patient Experience Coordinator with some more information I will certainly look into it. Her email is p.marland@nhs.net or contact number is 01324 566523.

Kind regards,

Claire Copeland

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