'You'll never have our trust' says mum after health board claims QEUH is safe
Charmaine Lacock's 3-year-old daughter Paige Rauson has contracted infections three times while being treated for Leukemia
The mum of a 3-year-old girl who contracted infections on three different occasions while being treated for leukemia at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital and Royal Hospital for Children, says the health board has failed parents.
Charmaine Lacock is telling Radio Clyde News that her daughter Paige Rauson, who was diagnosed in 2018, twice contracted Staphylococcus in September 2018 and February 2019 as well as Pseudomonas in March this year.
Staphylococcus is a germ that lives on people's skin and Charmaine was told by consultants that it had managed to get into Paige's central line.
Charmaine was also told that Pseudomonas was a hospital-based infection that is spread through unclean hands, contaminated equipment and can also be found in water.
She said dealing with the news about continual infections, on top of her child's cancer, was difficult to cope with:
"When somebody tells you your kid has cancer, you put your kid in a coffin.
"You think your kid isn't going to survive.
"Then you get into treatment and you think 'wow, this little three year old is a fighter' but then something like this is knocking her back and you just think that this has got nothing to do with you, this is not your fault you shouldn't even have to fight this this is somebody else's fault."
The Chief Executive of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde apologised to parents in an interview with Radio Clyde News last night, saying:
"I'd like to offer my apologies and I would like to say how sorry I am about the situation that has occurred in the QEUH and the Royal Hospital for Children."
"The hospital is safe, we've worked very hard over the last few weeks to ensure that those messages are being portrayed to the families of patients in the hospital and we are working hard to restore public confidence in the facility."
When pressed on whether she or other senior management at the health board would be stepping down, Ms Grant said that she and the leadership team were "absolutely committed" to resolving any issues and improving communication with families.
However, Charmain says that new management is needed:
"You will never rebuild parent's trust while that specific health board is there, they are not fit for purpose."
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