Clive Turnbull died last month after what was described by his family as a distressing time in the Mossbrae rest-home.
Mr Turnbull had lived in Mosgiel all his life and went into the Mossbrae facility for hospital care in late March.
Daughters Lisa Turnbull-Green and Vickie Turnbull said from the moment they walked into the facility they were met with abrupt behaviour.
‘‘As we walked in with Dad, the manager stood at the desk, watching him come in and said out loud ‘‘He’s too weak to be receiving radiation’’.
Mrs Turnbull-Green said it was very upsetting to hear those comments.
On that first weekend, Ms Turnbull visited her father only to find him half-dressed in a soiled bed.
She showered her father. ‘‘No-one came to clean his room that day, so I did’’.
Mrs Turnbull-Green rang the manager about the treatment.
‘‘She proceeded to tell me over the phone her staff were not good, she’d caught them earlier sitting around not working. She also told me that weekends were hard as they did not have cleaners. The overall conversation centred around how hard it was for her until I had to stop her.
‘‘Once Dad’s illness progressed, I heard from the [Otago Community] Hospice once the whole time Dad was in Mossbrae.
‘‘Hospice staff informed me Dad wouldn’t go to a hospice as he will be receiving hospice care at Mossbrae, which is heartbreaking as he never received that care. And neither did the family members that were with Dad at the end of his life.
‘‘It felt like at every turn she [the manager] wanted to make things difficult for us and we just can’t understand why.’’
The family noticed Mr Turnbull’s clothes had not been changed over Easter weekend.
‘‘These observations reinforce our concern that there are significant workforce issues at Mossbrae, particularly over weekends.’’
The night before Mr Turnbull died, Mrs Turnbull-Green rang the manager as her father’s health was getting worse.
‘‘After I told her who I was, I was met with ‘‘What’s the problem this time?’’ She then proceeded to tell me she was at the supermarket.
‘‘I saw red at that stage and told her what I thought of the whole situation. She again blamed her staff and said that he should be receiving better care and she didn’t know why it wasn’t happening. I told her you need to fix this now and she said she would go back to Mossbrae after she finished her shopping. I hung up on her after that. I couldn’t believe what had just happened over the phone.’’
Mr Turnbull died on April 18. Ms Turnbull-Green said she was contacted and told her father had gotten worse so she rushed into Mossbrae. She was with him the whole afternoon and no-one came in to check him.
‘‘Dad was without any form of care for six hours. Had I not voiced this, I’m certain he would have been left without comfort care on the last day of his life. Even after ringing the bell for quite some time, I had to find someone to come and attend to Dad. They seemed annoyed.’’
Mrs Turnbull said the manager told her she realised her afternoon staff were not adequately trained in palliative care.
‘‘This was also quite emotional and distressing to hear while my father was in the next room. I’m deeply upset by a comment from the manager when we finished our discussion.
‘‘She said that I was taking ‘bad energy’ into my dad’s room. This was completely inappropriate.’’
The daughters said they were considering whether to take the treatment of their father to the Health and Disability Commissioner.
They were deeply concerned about the clear lack of management, communication, empathy and clinical oversight at Mossbrae.
‘‘We also have serious concerns regarding the way some staff interact with residents. This was apparent in the manner some staff spoke with our dad, as well as the rough handling observed while assigning him with dressing.
‘‘We were concerned with the dismissive tone and visible frustration shown by staff when we attempted to ask questions about his medications and care.’’
They said it was extremely distressing that Mossbrae had effectively acknowledged that their father did not receive the level of care he should have been provided.
‘‘We remain seriously concerned that other residents may experience similar issues.’’
Mossbrae is owned by NZ Aged Care Services.
NZ Aged Care Services clinical and operations manger Virginia Sisson said as an aged-care provider, it takes all facility concerns seriously.
‘‘We address them with the relevant parties while maintaining respect and protecting individuals’ privacy,’’ she said.
