Overview
The complainant (Ms C), acting as Independent Advocate for Miss A, raised a concern about the decisions taken by staff about artificial feeding by nasogastric (NG) tube for Miss A during a hospital admission from 25 June 2011 and 8 September 2011. Ms C also raised a concern about a lack of consultation with her about a Do Not Attempt Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (DNACPR) decision in September 2011. Ms C also had concerns about the accuracy of Lanarkshire NHS Board (the Board)'s response to her complaint in October 2011.
Specific complaints and conclusions
The complaints which have been investigated are that:
- (a) during a hospital admission from 25 June 2011 to 8 September 2011, a flawed decision was taken to remove an NG tube (upheld);
- (b) a DNACPR decision was taken without appropriate consultation with Ms C as Miss A's advocacy worker (upheld); and (c) Lanarkshire NHS Board's complaint reply of 1 December 2011 inaccurately stated that a particular clinician had known Miss A since 2004 (upheld).
Redress and recommendations
The Ombudsman recommends that the Board:
- (i) use the circumstances of Miss A's case to review their practice in respect of patients with learning difficulties and/or suspected dementia, with particular focus on a review of the quality of decision making, the recording of decision making and the quality of record-keeping on admission and concerning DNACPR decisions; and
- (ii) review their procedures for investigating complaints to ensure that responses are both accurate and can be justified.
The Board have accepted the recommendations and will act on them accordingly.