AGONY: Enid Smith was pleading for help before she died, says her son[HULL NEWS]Statistics show that where you live affects how you die, with those in London likely to suffer a worse death than almost anywhere in the country.
Professor Sir Mike Richards, Chief Inspector of Hospitals, warned: “There are huge numbers of inequalities in end-of-life care. There are the inequalities by geography. There’s undoubtedly inequality by diagnosis: cancer patients get a better deal than other people.
“There are inequalities by where you happen to be, with hospitals doing undoubtedly the worst, and care homes doing a whole lot better. Hospices do best.”
Professor Richards says he believes patients with disabilities and dementia, the homeless and those with mental health needs are likely to have poorer treatment at the end of life compared with people with cancer and heart disease.
Seeing my mother die in that way was horrific. For 20 to 25 minutes before she died, Mum was saying, ‘Help me, help me’
He added: “It saddens and upsets me that people do not get good end-of-life care. This is a difficult time and we need to ensure we treat people with care and compassion. I hear of disturbing stories.”
News of the national investigation follows increasing reports of dying patients being left in pain and distress, suffering hallucinations and not getting the help they need, especially at weekends when palliative care specialists are not available.
According to the Office for National Statistics, data from almost 50,000 bereaved relatives in 2012 found South-west trusts were rated most highly while those in most London areas came in the bottom 20 per cent in the country.
Just 62 per cent of people in north-west London believed loved ones had “always” been treated with dignity and respect by community nurses while in Cornwall it was 88 per cent.
Most areas in the North-east, North-west and Yorkshire were in the top 20 per cent for quality of care and showing dignity. Lowest scores were found in London and the East.
This summer’s inquiry was a recommendation to the Care Quality Commission from an independent review of the controversial Liverpool care pathway.
The review panel concluded that the pathway, which suggested the withdrawal of treatment, food and water from some sedated patients in their final hours or days, was used “as an excuse for poor-quality care”.
An investigation has been launched into the care of an elderly cancer patient after her family claimed she was denied her right to a peaceful death last month because of a lack of palliative care workers.
Enid Smith, 81, a former hospital clerk in Hull, East Yorkshire, who had pancreatic and liver cancer, chose to die at a nursing home after being assured care would be on hand within 10 minutes of her need.
However, her son Carl, 54, a Hull restaurant manager, claims the widowed mother-of-three was left in agony, waiting for painkillers and tranquillisers.
When the family complained, he says, they were told there was a shortage of weekend staff.
Mr Smith added: “Seeing my mother die in that way was horrific. For 20 to 25 minutes before she died, Mum was saying, ‘Help me, help me’.”
He claimed the palliative team was called on seven occasions in the 48 hours prior to her death and took up to an hour and a half to arrive.
City Health Care Partnership, responsible for end-of-life care in Hull, has launched an investigation but declined to comment.
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