NHS Tayside nurses failed to properly care for a bowel cancer sufferer in the final weeks of his life.
The man, identified only as Mr A, was given an unfavourable prognosis and was discharged home from hospital into the care of his GP and the district nursing service.
After being at home for a short while Mr A died.
Mrs C, who is an advice worker, complained to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) on behalf of the deceased’s wife Mrs A about the care and treatment her husband received before he died.
Mrs A complained about the various agencies involved in her husband’s care and was particularly unhappy because she considered that district nurses had failed to properly care for her husband in the final weeks and days of his life.
She also believed the levels of communication and support and standards of care had been poor.
The ombudsman noted that, in responding to her complaint, the health board agreed there were failures in the support and care offered to Mr and Mrs A, and apologised.
However, the report added: “Mrs A remained concerned that lessons had not been learned, nor had procedures been put in place to prevent this happening again.
“She also complained about the way in which her complaint had been handled.”
The ombudsman took independent advice from an experienced registered nurse. Their investigation confirmed that the board had admitted there were shortcomings in Mr A’s care and found that it had taken too long to deal with her complaint.
The SPSO upheld the complaint, while noting that the board had put processes in place to address the problems with Mr A’s care and had apologised sincerely to Mrs A for the failings.
The report added: “As our investigation also found that the board had taken Mrs A’s concerns most seriously and that the processes put in place provided a good response to them, we did not find it necessary to make any recommendations.”