NHS Fife investigating claims elderly patient was left on hospital trolley for 14 hours
An elderly woman was left on a hospital trolley in Fife without food and drink for 14 hours, it has been claimed.
The new wing at the Victoria Hospital.
- By Craig Smith
- Published in the Courier : 12.01.12
- Published online : 12.01.12 @ 11.50am
Councillor Andrew Rodger contacted The Courier to highlight the case, which is understood to have taken place earlier this month as medical staff continued the move into the new £170 million wing at Kirkcaldy's Victoria Hospital.
While he acknowledges there will be teething problems with any switch, Mr Rodger believes the latest alleged incident should be investigated by the health board to avoid a repeat.
Mr Rodger said he had been approached by relatives of a 72-year-old woman who claimed their loved one had been left on a hospital trolley from 4pm on January 3 until 6am the following morning.
The patient, who has not been named, is understood to have been discharged later that day after being treated.
Mr Rodger said: "What I'm saying here loud and clear again is that as we move to the new hospital someone needs to start counting beds, because I know of one consultant that is getting patients boarded into his ward and he can't treat the patients he wants to treat.
''If we're told there are beds available, why is this person not being put into the appropriate bed?
''I spoke to the hospital on Friday about this and nobody got back to me, and it's the same again this week. I've given them the opportunity to get back to me and they never did because they are trying to cover their tracks."
He continued: ''It doesn't give us any faith in the system and it appears the health board has learned no lessons from what's happened in the past.''
Mr Rodger said he also has picked up concerns over whether the number of consultants and doctors on during the night is adequate.
''These type of things need to be highlighted because they won't go away,'' Mr Rodger said. ''I believe the new chief executive of the operational division has to be a medical person from a medical background, because we have had these problems too many times.
''We need a nurse or a doctor who is willing to take on the challenge because it needs someone who understands the pressures. It might be all right in other areas not to have that, but it's not good enough for Fife.''
The massive project to move services across to the new wing at the Victoria has been several months in the pipeline, although accident and emergency was the first department to be transferred on December 19.
On Monday the final patients were accepted at Forth Park and patients and staff make the move to the Victoria's new maternity unit, while west Fife's accident and emergency service is expected to begin relocating from Dunfermline's Queen Margaret Hospital by the end of the month.
Mr Rodger has taken his concerns and his constituent's claims to health chiefs and NHS Fife said it is investigating the circumstances behind the alleged incident.
Caroline Inwood, director of nursing for NHS Fife's operational division, said: ''We are currently looking into the concerns raised by Councillor Rodger. We spoke to Councillor Rodger yesterday and again today, and will write to the patient once our investigation is complete.''
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