Ms F complained about the care provided to her son, Mr G, in February 2024. We investigated her concerns about the clinical assessment and treatment of Mr G’s physical symptoms, his management while he was in hospital and the standard of record keeping during the relevant time period.
The Ombudsman found that the clinical care provided and the working diagnoses as the clinical picture unfolded were, overall, appropriate. There was nothing to suggest Mr G’s Influenza A should have been identified sooner and it was treated promptly when it was diagnosed. Additionally, although there were gaps and omissions in the record keeping, these did not compromise Mr G’s care to the extent that it was inappropriate. These elements of Mrs F’s complaint were not upheld.
The Ombudsman also found that Mr G was managed in a chair, rather than a bed. This was in line with relevant policy for when the hospital is under pressure with high capacity but there was a failure in this case to consider Mr G’s autism and individual needs in relation to the decision to manage his care in a chair rather than a bed. This element of the complaint was upheld.
Since the time of the events, the Health Board had taken significant positive steps to improve the experiences of patients with additional needs. The Ombudsman invited the Health Board to remind staff of the importance of maintaining comprehensive records – including at times of high pressure – to ensure continuity of care.
The Ombudsman recommended that the Health Board should apologise to Mr G, remind relevant staff of the importance of taking full account of patients’ additional needs, including at times of extreme pressure, and ensure that an appropriate proportion of relevant staff had completed approved Autism Awareness training.