Thursday, March 28, 2024
1‘Lazy’ Nurses left 87-year-old slumped in chair

‘Lazy’ Nurses left 87-year-old slumped in chair

By Oliver Farrimond

THE FURIOUS daughter of an 87-year-old woman has hit out at “lazy” NHS staff after they left her all night in a chair.

Eileen McColl, 61, accused nurses at St John’s Hospital in Livingston, West Lothian, of being “too lazy” to move her into the bed next to her.

Williamina Sandison was left with swollen legs and ankles after being left slumped in the chair for over 12 hours.

Eileen, from Drumshoreland in West Lothian, said: “Her legs and ankles were really swollen and sore because she didn’t have a stool to rest them on, and they’re still swollen now.

“I don’t know what has been going on but it seems like they were too lazy to move her.”

Melanie Hornett, Nurse Director at NHS Lothian, said: “This was an unacceptable situation, and I would like to apologise to Mrs Sandison and her family for the distress caused.

“This was an unacceptable situation, and she should not have spent the night like that – we are investigating what happened.

“We have met with Mrs Sandison’s family and I would like to reassure them that all appropriate action will be taken and that lessons will be learned to prevent a similar incident from happening again.”

Staff from the hospital have come under fire for similar incidents a number of times in previous years.

In 2008, 83-year-old John McAndrew from Livingston was left waiting by nurses from the same ward for a week for an appointment.

He was eventually discharged without ever seeing a doctor or receiving an examination.

And in July of this year, 77-year-old Ken Maclean was sent home TWICE with a needle in his arm because nurses forgot to remove it.

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