"Shocking"

Anything else?

My father in his 70s suffering with cancer was admitted to LRI. Reason he was there was because he was told on a prior visit to the Oncology dept to stop taking the steroids he'd been on since the beginning of the year-not slowly over months but just stop cold turkey. This was extremely dangerous advice and as a result only a couple days after stopping them he had awful withdrawal symptoms and felt like he was having a heart attack. Was rushed to A&E where thankfully they did promptly put him back on the steroids. He spent a week and a half in hospital-they messed us about everyday saying he was coming out the next day then they changed their minds, didn't seem to know why he was in there or what to do with him-he should have been released as soon as he was back on steroids. They were concerned we didn't have the facilities to care for him at home so instead they decided it'd be better for him to stay in hospital until we did where they completely neglected him letting him develop an awful bedsore. Also pain meds weren't given frequently enough even though we made sure to tell them, he was in agony most of the time. LRI completely incapable of looking after their elderly patients, I wouldn't advise anyone to take their elderly relatives to the LRI. On a prior occasion when at home with his palliative nurse, she noticed he had brain tumour/stroke type symptoms (eyes not focusing together, numb down one side of face) and so she rang the LRI concerned his cancer had now spread to the brain. She was completely dismissed and told that his type of cancer doesn't spread to the brain (although rare it had done). Luckily he saw his optician a week later who immediately noticed his symptoms and sent him to the LRI for a scan. If it wasn't for this he may never have gotten treatment for his brain metastases. Unbelievable that the person on the phone could just dismiss the symptoms of a brain tumour or stroke like that, what they just couldn't be bothered to even see him to confirm or rule something that serious out? Everything about this hospital is just awful they seem to not have a clue what they are talking about and give extremely dangerous advice like to stop taking steroids cold turkey and dismissing the symptoms of a brain tumour over the phone! This is people's lives we are talking about! Absolutely shocking. My father died a week and a half after being in the LRI. Not only are his family grieving his death we have the added upset of knowing how terribly he was treated in hospital throughout his whole illness and especially in his last weeks.