A former nurse from Drumchapel has launched a campaign for more medical staff to be employed at Glasgow’s flagship hospital after her husband had to fight for his life.
Kirsty Solman has raised concerns over staffing levels within the stroke rehabilitation unit at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in the Southside after her husband Scott suffered a massive bleed on the brain that left him unable to walk.
She says he was also left waiting weeks for an urgent liver biopsy due to a lack of specialist radiographers.
Kirsty, who has more than 10 years experience working as a registered nurse in the NHS, exclusively told how she was horrified by shortages in care providers as her spouse fought to survive.
The 42-year-old said: “In all my years working within the health service, I’ve never seen things as bad as this.
"It’s genuinely not the nurses’ fault, they are doing a brilliant job, the problem is there’s just not enough of them to deal with the enormous strain they are under.
“Scott has spent over eight weeks in hospital after he suffered a bleed on his brain at our home. It happened three days after he had a liver biopsy due to complications with his diabetes.
"After the procedure, he was allowed to go home the same night but collapsed on our kitchen floor just days later.
“After being blue-lighted to hospital, we discovered that his blood pressure was through the roof and his blood sugar levels were spiking at 45.
"Things were so bad we were told that he might not pull through, it was terrifying for us both.”
After being rushed into resuscitation, doctors told Kirsty that they did not know if the bleed on Scott’s brain would stop, and because of the damage it had caused, he might need to be placed on life support.
Kirsty, mum to Kyle, 13, who has autism and ADHD, said: “You automatically fear the worst and as a nurse I knew my husband’s life was hanging in the balance.
“It’s been difficult for Kyle to process what his dad is going through. We are such a close family and the past few weeks have been so difficult for us.”
Brave Scott, 47, has amazed medics and made outstanding progress since being sent to a specialist stroke unit to help with his speech and mobility. However, Kirsty claims that dementia and other vulnerable patients who require one-to-one nursing care are also being placed in the unit due to a shortage of beds.
Kirsty, from Drumchapel, explains: “Scott has a long road ahead in terms of his recovery. He’s been left unable to move his right side, which has been very difficult for him.
“He’s making progress every day and is working hard with the physiotherapists. He needs help getting to the bathroom, but because the nurses are so rushed off their feet, it can be 40 or 50 minutes before someone is free to help him.
"Obviously that is quite distressing for Scott, and it’s meant he’s soiled himself on a few occasions. That’s really impacting his mental health because he feels so helpless.
“It’s not the nurses’ fault at all, believe me I know for myself how under the cosh they are day in, day out.
"The staff are very kind and caring towards Scott and are doing their absolute best under impossible circumstances.
"They are having to cope with other vulnerable patients in the unit, who should be in other wards and that is impacting how much time they can devote to stroke patients like Scott.”
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Kirsty says that staff at the QEUH are at breaking point – and says the situation at the hospital is only going to deteriorate unless urgent action is taken.
She added: “In my opinion, the staffing levels are becoming unsafe. I’ve seen occasions where there’s three shift nurses on with four auxiliaries looking after 30 patients in the a unit with high care needs.
"How can they possibly be expected to keep going like that? It’s no wonder staff are leaving the NHS and people are burnt out with exhaustion and stress.”
Now Kristy has written to the Chief Nursing Officer demanding answers and better staffing within the NHS as a whole.
The couple have also founded the charity Stand With Kyle Now to help others navigate child and adolescent mental health services.
With some kids waiting more than two years for an initial appointment, Kirsty hopes they will be able to exert pressure to help see these waiting times slashed.
She added: “We need change in the NHS and we need it before things any get worse, Nursing as a profession needs more investment and support. It is an integral part of the health service and deserve to be treated as such. The people on the frontline are what makes it all tick, they deserve so much better.”
A spokesperson for Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board said: “While we cannot discuss individual patient cases for reasons of confidentiality, we are sorry that the patient and their family have these concerns.
"We welcomed the opportunity to discuss this with them and to provide reassurance that arrangements were made to cover unplanned staff absences over the weekend, and we are satisfied that this ward was staffed at a safe level.
"Our dedicated staff continue to work tirelessly to ensure the highest standards across our hospitals and we would like to thank them for their continued efforts in delivering compassionate care to our patients.
"We recently welcomed 252 Newly Qualified Nurses to the South sector, which includes QEUH, and are continuing to recruit for our nursing vacancies. This will be kept under review throughout the year and new opportunities will be promoted as they arise."
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