Royal Hallamshire Hospital: Yorkshire man demands reimbursement from NHS for having to buy dying father's incontinence pads

Paul Sugars said that his 87-year-old father was discharged from the Royal Hallamshire Hospital for his end-of-life care at home with only seven days’ supply of continence wear while he awaited an assessment appointment several weeks after leaving hospital at the end of November. He said the continence service did not attend meetings held prior to his father leaving hospital, despite requested request for them to do so.

Mr Sugars said the family had to buy supplies to fill the gap, although there was never any change to his father’s continence needs.

He told Sheffield City Council’s health scrutiny sub-committee on December 21: “This clearly contravenes the principle that continuing healthcare be provided free at the point of delivery to qualifying patients. Who will reimburse the family for this and how?”

He asked the committee how this situation could be allowed to happen in spite of NHS policies that speak about patient-centred care and assurances of improvements to the continence service made to the committee in 2020.

Dr Zak McMurray, medical director (Sheffield) for the NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board, said that Mr Sugars would receive written answers to his questions.

He said: “As a clinician who still sees patients, this is the stuff that really makes a difference, so I’m really disappointed that we’re not taking this forward. I don’t want to criticise any individuals who could have taken this forward because we’re in a horrendous environment.”

Dr McMurray said that colleagues who could have given specific answers to questions were not able to attend because of the winter crisis that the NHS is facing, plus another major NHS reorganisation.

He said that the aim is for staff to work together flexibly to do the right things for patients. In the face of no more money coming into the NHS, there are “hard questions about where do we invest in healthcare in Sheffield and where do we disinvest?

“There are very different views about that in Sheffield. We do need to start having a conversation about this.”

Dr McMurray, a GP, added: “I’m surprised at the delay. It isn’t my experience of the system at the moment.”

Coun Dianne Hurst said she had experienced problems when caring for her mother in her final illness. It had taken longer getting connected to the continence service than it should have done.

She phoned them and was invited to pick up some supplies that had been returned to the service as unused, so in that case staff had acted to give immediate help.

Coun Hurst said that was a decade ago and improvements were meant to have been made.

Coun Mary Lea said her mother had bladder cancer and had to buy her own products. “Suddenly when she was at end-of-life care we got boxes and boxes and boxes of products that we didn’t use in the end.”

She added: “We need more help and interventions on how to deal with this problem.”

Lucy Davies from Healthwatch Sheffield said that, while some people are able to buy products they need when NHS supplies don’t arrive, many can’t afford that.

Coun Sophie Thornton told Mr Sugars: “I don’t think there’s been a word of sorry. It’s hard for you and your family. It is experiences that people like you are having that put this in context for us.”