OAP attacked in hospital

Published on Thursday 26 February 2009 09:14

HEALTH chiefs have apologised after an 83-year-old man was attacked by a fellow patient while being treated in a Lothian hospital.

Dementia patient Ronald Mellor was left with a black eye and gash on his face following the incident at St John's Hospital in Livingston.

His family say the attack was just one of several incidents in the hospital which had left him "a shadow of his former self".

NHS Lothian has apologised to the family, but added Mr Mellor's dementia "often caused him to behave aggressively".

Mr Mellor's daughter Debbie Hanson, 47, listed a catalogue of problems she said her father had endured since being admitted to hospital in September last year.

The assault happened soon after he arrived at the hospital, with Ms Hanson saying nurses told her the other patient in question "was prone to this kind of behaviour".

Mrs Hanson also alleges that her elderly father had another patient's false teeth forced into his mouth by a nurse, has lost 200 worth of clothes during his stay in the hospital, has been left sleeping in the same clothes he wore that day and that his family has had to wash other patients badly soiled clothes.

She said: "I wrote the NHS a three-page letter detailing all our complaints regarding his care, but in reality it could have been much longer.

"The care he has received in that ward has been absolutely shocking. I was told he had been 'awkward' one day when I asked why he didn't have his teeth in for lunch. It turns out they were trying to force another patient's teeth into his mouth.

"It makes me so angry and disturbed to think my dad is being treated this way. Is it what we can expect when we get older?"

Mr Mellor, who worked as a Co-op butcher for 50 years, has now been moved to Maple Villa, a part-council run unit, having been in St John's since September.

Mrs Hanson, a fitness trainer from Livingston, said since being taken in from his sheltered housing complex to hospital his health had gone downhill rapidly.

In her letter, she wrote: "Every shift has passed the buck to someone else and said it is not their responsibility. Telephone calls are rarely returned. Written notes have not been responded to on both occasions they have been handed in.

"The sagas of lost clothing continue and a large amount of money has been spent on replacing dad's missing clothes. I have been getting other people's soiled clothes to wash in bags marked for my father."

Dr James Hendry, acting clinical director for the West Lothian Community Health and Care Partnership, said: "We have apologised to Mr Mellor and to his family for any distress caused during his stay at St John's.

"We have been in close contact with his family, including written correspondence and meetings, to discuss Mr Mellor's ongoing care and address areas of concern.

"Mr Mellor did suffer a cut to his eye following an incident with another elderly patient on the ward. However, staff were quickly on the scene and first aid was administered.

"Mr Mellor does suffer from advanced dementia which often causes him to behave aggressively. He has now been given a place in a specialist dementia unit."