"Poor treatment within a hospital setting"

My parent is elderly, is unable to hear or speak and is very vulnerable. We presented at Northam Hospital recently and I explained to the triage nurse that my parent was experiencing delirium and very concerned, suspected Urinary Tract Infection. The initial triage nurse was lovely. My parent was taken into the Emergency Department and I spoke with the Doctor and I explained that my parent was experiencing delirium and that it occurred very abruptly and my parent was displaying similar symptoms as per their previous admission a month earlier where they had a fall at midnight, ambulance called, gashed their head requiring stitches, broken collar bone and delirium and discharged the same night. The Doctor completed a urine test which returned negative reading and the doctor advised that they would not be sending the sample to pathology and suggested I see a GP, it was probably dementia and to obtain a referral to Geriatrician. I explained quite clearly this delirium was sudden overnight and prior to this my parent was catching the share and care bus to attend shopping.

Upon returning home and through that night I made two phone calls to Northam Hospital quite distressed as my parent was deteriorating and the responses were very unhelpful. I made an appointment with the local GP who stated that dementia does not occur overnight and my parent’s symptoms are the cause of an infection and reorder the urine test and blood test. My parent deteriorated significantly over the coming days, my parent was not sleeping at night, found my parent crawling along the floorboards, seeing people who were not present, making sandwiches for children who were not present, trying to catch a bus at 3.30 pm to go home, running into walls etc. A few days after the initial ED admission was the worst and I could no longer communicate with my parent. Attending the GP the next day and the urine test returned a positive reading of Ecoli. By this time days had passed and my parent’s condition worsening and the GP provide a script for medication which was exactly the same medication my parent had been on for four days without any improvement.

We presented at ED and again I explained all the symptoms and again explained this was an overnight change of character and the Dr admitted my parent to the ward. Since being on the ward my parent has not improved, my parent is still wearing the same clothes they presented in, nil record of my parent having a shower, nil interpreter provided and nil confirmation of what my parent is being treated for and nil improvement. I feel that my parent has been left in a room without any improvement in a delirious state and deteriorating and no one seems to care. My parent is extremely vulnerable without a voice. I am extremely concerned that the infection has not been located or treated appropriately and concerned the impact is having on my parent’s overall health and possibility of permanent damage to my parent. The fact that my parent has not showered since admission and is still wearing the same clothes and their deterioration, I feel is evidence of the lack of treatment and care my parent is being provided, which is no less than appalling. My parent needs help.