Hospital issue apology – as blind elderly Worksop woman left with 'no care' due to transport mistake

Jane McKay, 77, from Creswell, Worksop, was admitted to Chesterfield Royal Hospital earlier this month after she suffered her fifth stroke.

Before being discharged, Mrs McKay had to undergo a mental capacity test, which concluded that the patient was not well enough to make her own decisions about her healthcare or wellness.

The hospital decided that Mrs McKay, who is blind, hard of hearing and diabetic, was not fit to be released to her home address following the stroke and it was recommended that she should be placed in a nursing home instead, where she would have access to 24 hours care.

The hospital and the family made all the necessary arrangements and Mrs McKay was set to be transported to Victoria Care Home in Worksop on Monday, December 16.

But soon after she left the hospital, Mrs McKay’s family received a phone call from a building warden at Victoria House in Creswell, Mrs McKay’s home address, informing them that she was transported home from the hospital.

Dave McKay, Mrs McKay’s son, said: “They transported mum to the wrong address and did not even realise. They left her on her own with no care, no nothing.

"It was lucky that the warden at the block, who was leaving for the day, bumped into her and called my sister.

"It was very, very stressful for us. My sister is blind, uses a wheelchair and relies on oxygen supply. I am blind too due to a genetic condition that runs in our family. We did not even know if mum had food and how she was doing. We could not help her.

"Me and my sister spent three hours on the phone calling the hospital, EMAS (East Midlands Ambulance Service) and PALS (Patient Advice and Liaison Service) and trying to get them to transport mum to the care home.

"Finally we spoke to a discharge coordinator at the hospital who admitted that there was a failure and the transport was rearranged. EMAS went back to take mum to the care home, where she is now.

"It was an unsafe discharge and safety procedures were not followed and it caused us a lot of stress and worry. I don’t know what would have happened if the block warden did not notice that mum was back and informed us.”

The family have submitted a complaint to the Chesterfield Royal Hospital and are hoping to receive a written apology.

Following the incident, a spokesperson for Chesterfield Royal Hospital said: “We are taking this matter very seriously and we will continue to work with Mrs McKay and her family to investigate this matter through our Assistance and Complaints team.

"We sincerely apologise for the administrative error that occurred on Monday, December 16 which resulted in Jean McKay being transported to her warden-controlled home address.

"We worked with our system partners to resolve this as quickly as possible and we understand the distress this has caused.”