"Sitting in a chair too long"

Hello, We were very sorry to read the review you posted about your mother’s recent experience in Livingstone Hospital. It is our Trust’s policy that all patients on the ward are offered an hour’s rest period on their beds every afternoon from 1pm to 2pm. Patients' wishes are respected if they choose not to rest on the bed and stay in the chair. Patients with swelling of the legs should be offered foot stools to support elevation and walking is encouraged. We have made enquiries and it appears that staff there have received no reports from relatives or staff that there are concerns about wrist bands cutting into wrists. The wrist bands should be checked at every drug round. There are also plenty of activities for the patients to participate in but again this is optional. Families and relatives are able to access senior nurses and managers on the unit to openly raise concerns about staff behaviours which will be taken very seriously if they are made aware. Again there should be a 2 hourly comfort round on the ward (over a 24 hour period) where patients are asked if they wish to go to the toilet. The nurses offer toileting at peak times i.e. immediately before and after meals and before retiring. Without further details it is difficult to offer an accurate response to your comments and the staff at the Hospital would very much like to be given more information to allow them to investigate further. If you would like the opportunity to do this please contact our Customer Care Team whose contact details are given below. Best wishes Customer Care Team Kent Community Health NHS Trust Tel: 0300 123 1807 Email: kcht.cct@nhs.net Website: www.kentcht.nhs.uk