A hospital in South Wales has launched an investigation into nursing home chief’s allegations of ‘unsafe’ discharge of patients as the NHS desperately tries to alleviate the bed-lock crisis.
Complaint reviewed Ialleges Royal Gwent Newport Hospital failed to notify nearby Aria Nursing Home of the elderly woman with dementia’s discharge and circumvented security procedures by asking her family to pick her up from the room.
The nursing home boss also alleges that the hospital failed to notify staff that their inmate was taking essential medications to soothe her outbreaks, “which pose a risk to herself and others.”
Ali Al Mufti, director of Arcadia Care Homes, owner of Aria, said: “Of course, I understand that hospitals must be forced to empty beds, and although by the end of the month we were inundated with calls to leave hospital people, last year I would not say that we felt some pressure to pick her up before January.
“We had a resident who was returned to us last weekend, but the hospital did not tell us that she would come. She is a woman in her eighties with dementia.
“Instead, the hospital informed the family that their relative could leave and come back to us. This means we have not been able to assess her condition to make sure she is healthy enough to return.
“We have received some documentation of the medications she is currently taking, but we have not been told that she has stopped taking any medications to help relieve the symptoms of her dementia. This meant that she was more prone to outbursts that put her and others at risk.
“Fortunately, we took care of this, notified the hospital, and they returned the necessary medicines to her.
“The hospital claims to have told the family about the drug, but that is not enough. How did they know the family would understand the consequences or pass on the information to us?”
Mr Al Mufti said this was the second time in a month that a resident had been returned from the hospital in conditions he said circumvented security procedures.
In early January, a resident who tested positive for Covid was sent home.
“In another case on Jan. 9, the hospital told us that one of our residents had tested positive for Covid after a PCR test,” he said. “The correct protocol calls for two negative PCR tests on days five and six, but the hospital did two consecutive lateral flow tests that were negative on the same day and sent them home.
“A resident with Covid needs to be isolated from other residents, but this resident is a homeless person and cannot be kept away from others.”
Mr Al Mufti added: “The most important thing is that we should conduct our own checks on residents before they return from the hospital, but we have not done that either. Protocols weren’t being followed, and the hospital appears to have cut costs to free up beds as quickly as possible.
“My biggest concern is that this will continue because it’s really not safe to bring someone back without proper security procedures in place to protect the hospital resident as well as other residents and staff.”
Mr. Al Mufti sent an email to the King’s Gwent, run by the Anairin Bevan University Health Board (ABUHB), complaining about the recent return of its residents, claiming that “usual protocols were bypassed on two occasions.”
Following this letter, the ABUHB launched an investigation into Mr. Al Mufti’s complaint.
An ABUHB spokeswoman said: “It would be inappropriate to comment while the investigation is ongoing. The well-being of our patients will always be our top priority and we take all allegations of safety concerns very seriously.
“We adhere to national and local guidelines and testing protocols when patients are discharged from our hospitals.
“However, it is important to note that patients can test positive for several days after a PCR test in a hospital.”
The problems at Mr Al Mufti’s nursing home are recurring, according to nursing home managers in the UK.
Geoffrey Cox, board member of the Association of Nursing Homes and member of the Alliance of Care Associations, said: “Got a problem? Yes, I think there is. “Is there a danger? Yes, I think they may be.”
Mr. Cox, who is also the chief executive of the Southern Healthcare nursing home group, said: “Now the story is that hospitals are trying to discharge people who are medically healthy, but what the hell does that mean?
“I think the government will probably start selling that if there’s nothing else you can do for them, don’t put them in the hospital, get them out. It’s pretty aggressive and I’m looking forward to it now.”
Lucy Bull, manager of the Castle Grove Nursing Home in Bampton, Devon, said she sent the wrong inmate from the hospital in December.
She said, “It’s a mess, it’s scary and it’s taking lives. The whole system is in crisis, not only in the southwest, but throughout the country.
“We often see how people are discharged from the hospital without the necessary documents, without the necessary medicines.
“The wrong guest was delivered to our nursing home just before Christmas.
“They were supposed to go to another house in South Devon, but the paperwork was wrong.”
NHS spokeswoman Devon said: “Our care teams are working hard to ensure people are safely discharged from the hospital when they are deemed fit to be discharged for health reasons, whether they are traveling to their own home or to a nursing home.
“We know we don’t always get it right, and we work closely with our peers in the healthcare industry to address their concerns, investigate issues, and make improvements where possible.”
Source: I News
I’m Raymond Molina, a professional writer and journalist with over 5 years of experience in the media industry. I currently work for 24 News Reporters, where I write for the health section of their news website. In my role, I am responsible for researching and writing stories on current health trends and issues. My articles are often seen as thought-provoking pieces that provide valuable insight into the state of society’s wellbeing.