"Guardianship"

My daughter has Down Syndrome and while she presents as fairly able, she does not always understand or remember details about her health care or questions asked about how she feels etc. Me, my wife and other daughter have a Guardianship Order in respect of her medical and health care, but despite this, and the staff having a copy of the Guardianship, we were not informed about her treatment or consulted.

She was asked or informed about treatment and how she felt and either gave inaccurate info or misunderstood the situation. We asked to speak to doctors in order to ensure she had or gave accurate information but this was often ignored. The whole point of a Guardianship order is to ensure that the disabled person is assisted in giving or receiving information and thus received the appropriate treatment. Failure to do this can be detrimental or even dangerous and lead to wrong diagnosis and treatment. It is essential that from the outset we as Guardians are involved and able to inform staff of our daughter's ability to fully understand and communicate with medical staff.  

We are disappointed in the staff at Monklands and their  level of cooperation with guardians in order to achieve a timely and effective course of treatment. On at least one occasion a doctor spoke to our daughter directly and she totally misunderstood what was asked or interpreted it incorrectly. This could have had serious consequences if we as guardians had not followed this up and realised the misinformation involved. 

The hospital did not follow the correct protocol in this matter -  guardianship is given for a very good reason: the safety of the disabled person. Also, if guardians are involved right from the start this could help staff in their management of the disabled person’s care and avoid misunderstandings and consequent mistakes. Guardianship should not be viewed as a procedural hindrance but rather as a help to efficient diagnosis and treatment. It is peoples' lives that we are talking about here, not an administrative issue. 

We are asking Lanarkshire Health Board to please ensure staff are fully aware of their obligations in this matter and act accordingly so that the best possible clinical outcome can be achieved. A Guardianship Order is a legal document, not an advisory statement, and hospitals should treat it as such and carry out the powers it gives to guardians.