By Gary Cooper

HEALTH CHIEFS have agreed to shell out after an Angus pensioner’s specially-made shoes were lost as she battled a nasty infection in hospital.

Diane Shaw was unable to leave her Kirriemuir home after the footwear could not be found at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee following her five-day stay.

Despite contacting hospital administrators, there is still no sign of the custom-fitted shoes more than a month after she was discharged.

Following the intervention of The Courier, NHS Tayside bosses yesterday agreed to pay for replacements

Mrs Shaw, confined to a wheelchair by arthritis in her spine, was whisked to ward 15 on February 18 to be treated for cellulitis.

After a few days she was transferred to the infection control unit at Ward 42. Her shoes went missing during the move.

Mrs Shaw said the combination of drips, painkillers, the infection and a high temperature made her very groggy during much of her stay.

“So it wasn’t until I was ready to leave that I noticed the shoes had gone.

“Some folk might dismiss them simply as a pair of shoes, but I can’t wear cheap shoes and have to buy special ones,” she said.

Mrs Shaw added, “I need them as I have a condition, amongst others, called lymphoedema which causes very swollen feet and I also had support bandages on both legs and feet.

“The cellulitis made this worse and the shoes I had in hospital were the only ones I could wear.

“When they went missing, it meant I couldn’t go out. I can take a few steps to get to my car, but I can’t do it with nothing on my feet as I’m so afraid of infection.”

Mrs Shaw spoke to nursing staff at Ward 42 about her plight. They contacted Ward 15 on her behalf, but to no avail. “I wrote to both Wards 15 and 42 two weeks after discharge and still have not had the courtesy of a reply,” she said.

“I could understand something going wrong if I had been in Ninewells for a month, but five days is hardly a long time.”

She is now able to get about as the swelling in her feet has reduced, allowing her to fit into other custom-made shoes—costing £40 a time— until the next infection strikes.

“The shoes that are missing are not particularly bonny, but are purely functional,” Mrs Shaw said. She is “mystified” as to where they have gone.

“As a pensioner, I can ill-afford to lose a pair of shoes,” she added.

However, she is able to see a lighter side of the matter and has dubbed herself Cinderella.

NHS Tayside spokeswoman Jane Duncan said, “We were aware that Mrs Shaw’s shoes had gone missing and staff on wards 15 and 42 at Ninewells had been investigating the matter.

“Unfortunately, we have been unable to find the patient’s shoes and she has now been contacted and advised she will be reimbursed.”