Dementia patient who went missing from UHL 'could have been killed' - daughter

The distressed family have questioned how no one noticed the woman exiting her ward, the hospital building or the hospital grounds.

The INMO has said that staff at UHL feel as though they are in Groundhog Day as the crisis situation is becoming normalised. Picture: Dan Linehan

The family of an elderly woman with dementia, who went missing while awaiting treatment in the emergency department of a Limerick hospital, say that management told them overcrowding was to blame for the incident.

The daughter of the 79-year-old Limerick woman told the Irish Examiner her mother was only discovered missing after another patient at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) notified staff. She said her mother was missing for more than two hours before she was found by gardaí and ‘she could have been killed’.

The woman, who suffers from dementia, was taken to A&E on Sunday night by her daughter, who had to leave the hospital in the early hours of Monday morning to go to work.

According to the daughter, who wishes to remain anonymous to safeguard her mother’s privacy, the 79-year-old left the hospital at 7.20am and was found by gardaí at 9.40am outside a church nearly a kilometre away, along a busy road.

“Management just said that they were sorry and that the hospital was overcrowded,” the daughter said.

“It was only through another patient, a girl who said she would keep an eye on her, that the staff were notified that my mother was missing. The girl knew her bed was empty,” the daughter said.

I have no faith in that hospital. My mother was brought there to be looked after, and she was left to wander. She could have been knocked down. She could have been killed.

A spokesperson for UL Hospitals Group confirmed that they were aware of the incident.

“We can confirm that a review is underway after an elderly patient left the Emergency Department this morning, Monday, May 30. The patient reattended the Emergency Department later in the morning,” they said.

“Our staff have apologised to the family of the patient concerned. As this matter is now under review and in the interests of patient confidentiality, it would be inappropriate to comment further,” they added.

However, the family of the woman say have said they will not return to the hospital. They also contacted Sinn Féin TD Maurice Quinlivan, who said he would raise the issue with hospital management.

Mr Quinlivan said that other families have subsequently reached out with similar stories about loved ones. He added: "Frontline staff at the hospital can only do so much but they are burned out and lacking capacity".

Patients 'deserve so much better'

It comes as figures from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) showed that there were 118 patients without a bed at UHL on Monday morning, a quarter of all patients waiting on trolleys in the country.

The INMO said that staff at UHL feel as though they are in "Groundhog Day" as the crisis situation is becoming normalised.

Mary Fogarty, INMO assistant director of industrial relations said staff are facing persistent overcrowding and feel unable to provide appropriate care to all admitted patients.

The issue is sparking safety concerns for both staff and patients alike.

Staff members are also reporting significant work-related stress due to their working conditions. They are exhausted, overwhelmed, and burnt out, the INMO said.

In addition to the difficult working conditions presented by overcrowding, staff must also face public dissatisfaction and impatience with the hospital.

"The situation in UHL has been allowed to fester for far too long. We need to see real, meaningful short, medium, and long-term action," said Ms Fogarty.

"Patients, nurses, midwives, and the wider hospital community deserve so much better.”