My mother died of shock/ organ failure and starvation but still lost claim for CHC!!!

sharina

Registered User
Mar 17, 2010
148
0
I heard from the Local Appeal Panel that they had decided not to award CHC for any of the period that my mother was in care .....get this,including the day she died!

My mother was seriously ill throughout May 2010 and on the 3 rd JUne pronounced coming to the end of her life by the GP. She was in a residential bed and unnursed so sustained shock on the 8 th June. Ten days later she died.


She did not qualify for CHC at any time before dying. Not a penny will be paid by the PCT?

I am absolutely disgusted!
 

sharina

Registered User
Mar 17, 2010
148
0
Dying but not qualifying

I forgot to add that they accepted she needed to be nursed as she died but she did not qualify for CHC!!!!!!!!!!L!L!!L?L!!!!!!!!!!!

So the dying don't qualify .......who does?
 

Carabosse

Registered User
Jan 10, 2013
1,699
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I'm sorry to hear that your mum was un nursed at the end, i also think that the CH are responsible, they had a duty of care to you to look after your mum and to your mum herself not to be left alone during a period of what to your mum must have been terrifying as she would not have known (or understood) what was happening. If i were you, i would appeal against the decision also i would think about seeing a solicitor to possibly take out a crimminal action against the CH, although there is no criminal liability for failure to act, there may be criminal liability for failure to act in certain situations, e.g. wherethere is a contractural duty to care for another person (your mum). I would get advice on this.
 
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jenniferpa

Registered User
Jun 27, 2006
39,442
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Can I just point out, Carabosse, that there is a big difference between no nursing care (which is what Sharina said happened) and no care. I think you may have misread the original post. Sharina has not said that her mother was left alone, but that she didn't receive nursing care.
 
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sharina

Registered User
Mar 17, 2010
148
0
No CHC and no nursing

It has been confirmed by the PCT that as my mother died she was in a residential bed hence did not even receive FNC.

This was not a case of my mother suddenly dying. This was a case of my mother starving herself to death and 10 days beforehand suffering shock 70/50, rectal bleeding . The next 10 days days after dying she spent many an hour thrashing,grimacing clutching at the sheets and calling out for 'mum.'

I said to the manager are you sure you have not awarded CHC for any period at all? She confirmed this tone true.

I said not even for the day before she died?

Apparently so!

Well that has made my appeal to the Ombudsman a lot easier.


How can a dying woman not qualify?

It's not as if she had a heart attack and dropped down dead suddenly. In those circumstances it would be understandable. Instead she starved herself to death.
 

Carabosse

Registered User
Jan 10, 2013
1,699
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I would still appeal against the decision as is your right, i would also consult a solicitor who would know more on this subject and could advise you what to do.
And being 'un nursed ' could easily be construde (sp) as being left alone, if a person is at the end stage of life i have known a few nurses who haven't bothered being with the patient at that stage and left them alone, whilst i am not saying this is the case it makes you wonder.
I'm sorry if what i have said has offended you at this time Sharina that was not my intention.
 

sharina

Registered User
Mar 17, 2010
148
0
Dying

Carabosse .Not offended. Have absorbed your advice. No stomach for a civil claim.


I want the Ombudsman to look at everything and ask themselves ' if a dying woman does not qualify under these silly domains, are these domains fit for purpose?'

For instance why is there not a priority on the feeding domain?

This is exactly the point made in the House of Lords when the domains were discussed. They wanted to avoid dying people being refused CHC. They hoped this would not happen but it did to my mother.
 

Carabosse

Registered User
Jan 10, 2013
1,699
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I would consult a solicitor who is expert in this area, they would be able to guide you as to what should/ shouldn't be done, or why CHC wasn't awarded when maybe it should have been. I really think you need to put an appeal in and soon.
Have you had any replies to the letters you sent to the PM etc?
 

sharina

Registered User
Mar 17, 2010
148
0
My mother died

I know how to pursue a civil claim....if I was advising someone in the same circs as me I would advise that there was a reasonable prospect of success against the care home. However, I do not want to go down that route.

I just want to expose the system for the joke it is.

The domains are so ridiculous that a dying woman doe not qualify for CHC.

The domains are a completely made up fiction because the truth is that this country cannot afford to fund dementia care.


My perception is that the middle classes are being penalised. They have to fund their own care as they die.

Where will it all end?


I was watching a programme on Guernsey and a person mentioned that although the tax regime was favourable they had to fund their own medical care?

You could argue the same for the middle classes in the UK but they also pay high taxes.
 

hopeful56

Registered User
Jun 17, 2009
265
0
Midlands
Sharina

I am a bit confused about one of your postings - you said you asked the manager if she had awarded CHC? The eligibility for CHC is decided by the Primary Care Trust (the NHS), not a care home manager. Can you give us a bit more detail about this? Was your mum assessed by a multi-disciplinary team to see if she was eligible?

JJ
 

jenniferpa

Registered User
Jun 27, 2006
39,442
0
Sharina, please don't take this the wrong way, because I completely understand why you want to take this further, and why you feel you and your mother have been treated unfairly, but I would be remiss if I didn't mention that I'm not sure that the ombudsman will be able to help you. My understanding is that the ombudsman can make a report that a PCT (for example) didn't live up to their stated regulations, but from what you say, this isn't what happened. Your contention is that the domains are such that even with accurate scoring, your mother wouldn't qualify. I'm wondering if the ombudsman will be able to help you with this.
 

sharina

Registered User
Mar 17, 2010
148
0
Mother refused CHC

The manager was the admin manager for the HART team ( CHC review team) we have just been before the Independent Review Panel. A strange experience as the Chair turned up late complaining he had not received the paper work so how he chaired the Panel is quite amazing. The nurse on the panel had worked for the same health authority that had provided the re assessment so that was interesting.

It is clear that at some stage mum must have been hitting priorities .....she died. But they looked at the entire six months before her death and made no award. They said she had low emotional needs but before they changed her meds on one occasion she was locked into her room for her own good at night ( source,care home notes.) she was suffering from night time agitation.

They did not discover she was blind until days before her death because clearly no one understood or she did not realise she was blind in one eye and could barely see.

She got severe cognition

Low ASC ( TIA vas dementia!)

Low Psychological ( but described as low indeed by psychiatrist before she changed her meds 3 months before death.)

High nutrition

Moderate skin

Moderate bowels despite shock and rectal bleeding and needing management on Movicol that meant her pooh regime was splatter gun every other day or else co sit patios and overflow.

Behaviour moderate even though she fought with a six foot ex police man and he floored her. She also flirted with the me and is took them for dad.

...........

The point is that my mothers needs were changing rapidly. She stopped eating from the beginning of May onwards except for the fortisip diet and occasional banana. It was a huge celebration if she ate a yoghurt.

She did not suddenly die she developed an incapability of eating. Her weight plunged from 49.5 to below 42.

What annoys me is that they do not challenge your evidence. They listen to it and ignore it and prefer the PCT view. The PCT offered no evidence at the hearing other than what was in the domains. I challenged all of that and when asked if they wanted to say anything, the nurse declined.
 

sharina

Registered User
Mar 17, 2010
148
0
Dying no CHC

Extract from notes


6/5 she woke up complaining of sore head and neck.she said she had fell out of bed.

6/5 she has not been too good this afternoon.she has been complaining of pains in her head.she has barely eaten any tea.

6/5 she had a headache

7/5 she had a repeat of earlier min the day at lunch time.She decided to stand up and urinate herself.she got very distressed.she was taken to her room.She was cold and not responding to what was being said to her.

8/5 she was not standing very well.so sat her in a wheel chor.

9/5 She has not been too good today.She is very sleepy and achy.



10/5 complaining of pain in her arm.had a few mouthfuls of foripud but refused tea. it took a little while to get her to stand up.


11/5 She is not too good today.She is lying on her bed asleep.

11/5 She said the right side of her head was hurting.

12/5 she was very sleepy and did not want any tea.


15/5 refused fortisip but ate a banana. ( Her entire food intake for that day!)

16/5 only said she ate some ice cream the entire day.

17/5 did not eat much of her breakfast she did not eat a lot at lunchtime.

18/5 ate a little bit of breakfast.ate a little bit of lunch.did not eat tea. ( Nurse assessor said she did not have high nutrition needs! On that day !!!!!)


Thereafter there is endless reference to refusing meals and rejoicing because she ate a small bowel of rice crispies. She refused to participate in activities.




I believe she was having TIA's hence the pain in her head and shoulders.

The nurse assessor saw her on the 18th May and said se would not equality for CHC.
 

Egeon

Registered User
Oct 12, 2012
98
0
Sharina, I have, what I thought was sarcastic joking, frequently said that you had to be seconds from death before you were eligible for CHC if you are 'lucky'. Your story unfortunately proves that my sarcasm was in reality a fact :(
 

sharina

Registered User
Mar 17, 2010
148
0
Mum died

Some 6 weeks after the hearing have still not had the minutes or information on how to appeal further. It's ridiculous.
 

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