Visitors To Birmingham Hospital Found Their Mother In Bed Two Hours After She Had Passed Away

A son and daughter have spoken of their shock at finding their mother dead in her bed at the Heartlands Hospital in Birmingham.

Jimmy and Anastasia Weldon were visiting their elderly mother Helen in 2010 when they saw her lying lifeless, reports the Birmingham Mail.

According to the pair, when they went to tell nurses that the woman had been dead for some time, they "gawped in shock", such was their surprise.

But the son and daughter claim it should have been obvious that she had passed away because she was "yellow in the face and had dried food around her mouth.”

"Her starched water had gone solid as a rock, so she must have been there for at least two hours. We pulled the curtain round to give her a bit of dignity.

"That is the lasting image of my mother I have in my head - it’s the stuff of nightmares."

This is the latest in a string of similar alleged cases at the Birmingham Hospital.

Linda Webb, 65 from Solihull, claimed that her brother, Christopher Moran, 68, who died after being told he was "riddled with cancer", was also left dead in his hospital bed for an extended period of time.

Ms Webb was visiting her brother and as she arrived, the ward sister said he was feeling "a bit better" but hadn't had his breakfast.

The nurse allowed Ms Webb to enter, but when she went in she found the man lying on his back, clearly lifeless, with his mouth full of blood.

"It was clear he had been dead a while," she said.

A spokesperson for the Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust apologised for Ms Webb and Mr and Ms Weldon's experiences at the Birmingham hospital, and expressed a desire to improve services and make sure that similar incidents do not occur in the future.

Patients and relatives with any complaints have been asked to contact the trust on 0121 424 0808.

Expert Opinion

These reports are both shocking are concerning and our thoughts go out to the families who lost their loved ones in this undignified way. <br/> <br/>“Terminally ill patients should be treated with respect and their families must be supported and similarly shown compassion during what is obviously a very distressing time. <br/> <br/>“Unfortunately for these families, the lasting memory they have of their loved one has been tainted forever by what they had to witness. <br/> <br/>“We hope that the Trust will investigate the circumstances that led to these incidents occurring and put measures in place to ensure the same incidents cannot happen again.” <br/> Mandy Luckman - Partner