THE GRANDDAUGHTER of a Holmbridge pensioner who died after being struck down with Clostridium difficile today hit out against hygiene standards at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.
Roberta Noble, 36, said she was horrified by some of the incidents she witnessed during her grandfather Harry Schofield’s stay at HRI.
Lax hand washing techniques and bodily fluids being mopped from floors with only tissues were among the shocking practices she saw.
Now the family have written to hospital bosses to make sure no one else has to share their heartbreaking experience.
The mum-of-one said: “We don’t know how many people this has happened to, but we don’t want it to happen again.
“It is just so unnecessary.
“They really do need to sort it out.”
The 84-year-old – who lived alone – was admitted to HRI at the end of September feeling unwell with spells of sickness.
His first days were spent on ward 10 before b eing moved to ward 11 where he contracted a urine infection needing antibiotics.
On November 7 Harry was transferred to urology ward 22 with suspected kidney and prostate problems. While there, his condition worsened and he developed severe diarrhoea.
His family urged medics to test him for C. diff after recent media coverage about the infection.
Harry’s first test was negative, but the second came back positive on November 14.
His family said Harry’s health deteriorated quickly following the diagnosis, leaving him frail and barely unrecognisable within days.
He died on November 19. Doctors gave his cause of death as a combination of factors including C.diff, pneumonia and heart problems on the death certificate.
But Roberta, of Birchencliffe, believes C. diff was to blame for his sudden demise.
She said: “He started going downhill quickly and when I went to visit him after three days he just looked completely different. It was really sad.
“He shouldn’t have got it because he was in a side room on his own.
“He had been moved out of the room he was sharing with three other men because he was disturbing them when he had the urine infection.
“He was an old man and he had problems, but I think he would have gone home and lasted another year if he hadn’t caught that.
“It is just so sad.”
HRI said the concerns raised by Harry’s family were currently under investigation.
A spokeswoman for Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust – which runs the site – said: “We have offered Mr Schofield’s family our sincere condolences.
“They have raised some concerns with us which are being looked into by senior staff.
“They will compile a report and we will share this with Mr Schofield’s family and offer them the opportunity to discuss the findings further with us.”
She said the hospital had strict procedures in place to deal with patients showing signs of the infection.
According to the policy, patients with diarrhoea of an unknown origin are moved to a side room with en-suite facilities where possible, even before C. diff is confirmed by laboratory tests.
Cleaning processes are also increased around the bed area and staff and visitors are reminded of the importance of hand hygiene using soap and water.
The patient is assessed and monitored by the medical team and any use of antibiotics is reviewed.
Care plans and information leaflets about Clostridium difficile are also provided.
C.diff facts:
Clostridium difficile (C. diff) is a bacterium that is present naturally in the gut of around 3% of adults and 66% of children.
It doesn’t cause problems in healthy people but when taking antibiotics, the balance of good bacteria in the gut can change allowing C. diff to multiply.
Symptoms include mild to severe diarrhoea, blood-stained stools, fever and abdominal cramps.
Older people are most at risk from the infection, with the majority of cases (80%) occurring in people over the age of 65.
Most people make a full recovery, but in very rare cases the infection can be fatal.
It is extremely contagious and spreads easily, but good hygiene practices can prevent it.
It is diagnosed by carrying out laboratory tests on faeces.
