Overview
Miss C complained on behalf of her siblings and herself. She alleged that when her mother (Mrs A) was admitted to hospital, she was not properly assessed. In particular that FALLS assessments (a risk assessment tool for the prevention of falls in older people) which were carried out failed to take account of Mrs A's medical conditions. Miss C said that if a proper assessment had been made, Mrs A would not have been left alone on a commode. Miss C further complained about the way in which the Lothian NHS Board (the Board) subsequently handled her complaint.
Specific complaints and conclusions
The complaints which have been investigated are that:
- (a) the Board failed to conduct an appropriate risk assessment on Mrs A's admission to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (upheld); and
- (b) the Board failed to address Miss C's concerns adequately (upheld).
Redress and recommendations
The Ombudsman recommends that the Board:
- make a formal apology to Miss C and her siblings for their failure in this matter;
- look again at the FALLS assessment to ensure that staff exercise clinical judgement when assessing risk;
- emphasise to staff the importance of keeping accurate and timely records which would be fully adequate for the purposes of later scrutiny; and
- make a formal apology to Miss C and her siblings for the omissions in their correspondence.
The Board have accepted the recommendations and will act on them accordingly.