Overview
The complainant (Mr C) made a complaint about Grampian NHS Board (the Board). Mr C complained about the care and treatment he received for wounds and pressure sores; and the attitude of a Consultant Plastic Surgeon (Consultant 1). Mr C also complained about the Board's handling of his complaint.
Specific complaints and conclusions
The complaints which have been investigated are that:
- (a) Consultant 1 did not care for and treat Mr C's wounds and pressure sores appropriately (upheld);
- (b) Consultant 1 did not understand and direct the vacuum assisted closure (VAC) treatment of Mr C's wounds appropriately (upheld);
- (c) Consultant 1's attitude towards Mr C was inappropriate and he discriminated against Mr C because of his age and disability (not upheld); and
- (d) the Board's handing of Mr C's complaint, including the investigation, was inadequate (upheld).
Redress and recommendations
The Ombudsman recommends that the Board:
- (i) review their approach to team care for wounds and pressure sores such as Mr C's, to ensure a cohesive plan of management;
- (ii) review their protocols for the use of VAC treatment to ensure that it is used appropriately in conjunction with other treatments for relief of pressure sores pre-operatively;
- (iii) remind staff of the importance of good record-keeping;
- (iv) review their processes to ensure they obtain responses from relevant staff when investigating complaints; and review their processes for recording the investigation of complaints; and
- (v) apologise to Mr C for the failings identified in this report.
The Board have accepted the recommendations and will act on them accordingly.
Please note that this report contained typographical errors in three of the recommendation dates. The three recommedation completion dates that were recorded as 2010 should have been 2011.
The SPSO has apologised for these errors.