Lewisham Hospital: 'My dad had no dignity or compassion'

Clive Park, 61, suffered a stroke on May 7 and was rushed to Queen Elizabeth Hospital by a bystander.

From there, he was blue-lighted to King’s College Hospital for urgent scans before being moved to St George’s Hospital for surgery.

He was left paralysed on his left side following the incident. 

Clive initially received what Jade described as “brilliant” care but once he was recovering in Lewisham Hospital, she said the quality of care began to decline.

Jade claims her dad "was isolated from others, assaulted by a nurse, left with an untreated fracture and terrified following his discharge to his unsuitable flat".

She told the News Shopper: “There's no dignity or compassion in that hospital. It's ridiculous.

“I don't understand how people go through years of training only to end up not caring about their patients.”

Jade made a request for her dad to be tested for a UTI, but says she was ignored despite her dad having hallucinations.

On May 17, Clive was moved to Lewisham Hospital and Jade alleges that just five days later on May 22, he was assaulted by a member of staff.

Jade explained: “The problems started when they put him on a ward.

“One evening, he was asking to use the toilet, and a nurse told him to be quiet because other patients were sleeping.

“In the end, she came over to help, but instead of listening to him, she put her hand over his mouth and told him to shut up.

“My dad didn’t tell me until the next morning because he was afraid they’d treat him differently if he reported it.”

Jade claims that during Clive’s stay at Lewisham Hospital, he was subjected to neglect and poor treatment as he frequently waited over 30 minutes to use the toilet and his persistent back pain was ignored.

Jade said: “He was in pain, with really bad bruises up and down his arms.

“From my point of view. The bruises looked like bullseye punches, just without breaking through the skin. We asked for them to be checked, but it never happened.

“The care on the wards was poor. They were so lazy that they left him in a nappy instead of taking him to the toilet. My dad, a very private man, had no dignity there.”

Jade said: “He was in pain, with really bad bruises up and down his arms. (Image: JADE)

Despite requests for an X-ray, Jade says hospital staff dismissed his concerns, only to later discover that Clive had a fracture in his spine - believed to have occurred on the night of his stroke.

She adds that her dad was later separated from other patients leaving him feeling isolated.

Jade said: “My dad is quite a social person, and he was talking to everyone on the ward, keeping an eye on other patients for their families because of his experience, they moved him into an isolated room on his own.

“Then they placed a mentally unstable man in the room next to him who had hit nurses and thrown tables around. He kept going into my dad’s bathroom, threatening him.

“He was so scared. This man even came into my dad’s room naked and wiped his dirty bottom all over my dad’s bed.

“Eventually, I emailed the hospital, stating that they have a duty of care not only to the patient but also to the safety of their staff. After I sent the email, they moved my dad.”

Clive was discharged from Lewisham Hospital on July 11 into his basement flat in Woolwich, which Jade said London Fire Brigade later deemed unsafe due to the lack of an easily accessible exit.

Jade explained: “My dad's flat was assessed, which is a tiny two-room place with no fire exit and about 18 stairs.

“It’s not accessible at all, but they said it was fine. I asked them to reassess because I couldn’t see how this was suitable.

“They discharged him with just one person from the ambulance crew, who realised he couldn’t get my dad down the stairs alone.

“My dad waited four hours and ended up bumping himself down the stairs on his bottom with help from friends. He was petrified.”

Jade explained: “My dad's flat was assessed, which is a tiny two-room place with no fire exit and about 18 stairs. (Image: JADE)

Greenwich Council's adult social care service is responsible for decisions relating to his post-discharge housing assessments. --

Despite receiving intense physiotherapy between July 11 and August 9, Jade explained that Clive was left isolated and fearful in his unsuitable living conditions.

On August 9, Clive suffered another serious seizure to which Jade was alerted by a carer, and says she rushed to his home to find him in a life-threatening state.

Paramedics arrived quickly but had to wait an additional 30 minutes for a second crew to assist in moving Clive out of the flat.

Jade added: “If he had been able to get out of that flat straight away, I think it wouldn’t have gone on as long.

“The paramedics didn’t realize he was seizing until he got to the hospital. Every minute counts, especially in those situations.”

Clive was placed in an induced coma and put on life support at King’s College Hospital.

He has since been moved to Queen Elizabeth and is recovering - the cause of the seizures are still unknown.

Jade explained: “My dad is absolutely terrified now.

“He never went to the doctors before because he didn’t need to, but now he’s scared of being alone.

“He’s terrified that if something happens again, they won’t be able to get him out of that flat and he’ll die there, with no one finding him.”

Jade added that Clive is set to be discharged back to his flat, which she feels is unsuitable for his condition and is a danger to his life.

Greenwich Council and adult social care team were given opportunity to comment on Clive's post-discharge housing assesments, but did not provide a response.

Jade has also filed multiple formal complaints and remains deeply concerned about the "lack of dignity, compassion, and basic medical attention provided at Lewisham Hospital".

She expressed gratitude to the paramedics, surgeons at St George’s Hospital, and staff at King’s College Hospital, and a few individuals at Lewisham who provided her father with some comfort during his darkest hours.

A Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust spokesperson said: “We have received Ms Park’s complaints and take her concerns very seriously.

“We have an investigation underway and hope to be able to respond fully to Mr Park and his family soon.

“In the meantime, we are sorry for any distress felt and would like to thank the Park family for bringing these matters to our attention.”