A HEARTBROKEN husband is demanding answers from a Worcestershire hospital which he believes had a hand in the death of his beloved wife.

Phyllis Thompson, of Stourport, died in June after a stay at Worcestershire Royal Hospital, but her husband Barry claims failures by doctors, nurses and hospital equipment caused her death.

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust have said they have contacted Mr Thompson to discuss his concerns and apologised for the lack of communication he received about his wife’s care.

The 59-year-old was admitted to the hospital from Stourport Medical Centre in May suffering from what was thought to be hypothermia, but Mr Thompson claimed after being checked in, his wife, who he had cared for for 37 years because she suffered from diabetes, was ignored, left undiagnosed and given the wrong medication.

He said: “She went in for hypothermia but when she went in, they never checked her, they left her. They treated her really badly, she was covered in bruises and they weren’t feeding her or looking after her.”

Mr Thompson, his son and his son’s girlfriend were at Mrs Thompson’s bedside worried for her wellbeing and looking after her on a daily basis while she was hospitalised.

“I’d stay up all night and try to make sure she was all right, but when she went into hospital they just left her,” he said. “I have been giving her injections for years and I have never bruised her once, but the nurses at the hospital couldn’t even do a blood test.

“She was all right until they gave her some antibiotics they shouldn’t have. They did not do any scans or checks before they gave them to her. When they tried to check, the machines weren’t working and I think that’s what killed her.”

He added that on one occasion Mrs Thompson was so thirsty from not being attended to she drank four pints of water given to her by her husband and had not been able to use the toilet because a female nurse was not available to take her and a male porter was sent in.

After her death, a post mortem was completed, but Mr Thompson is still unaware of what caused her death, and the stress of it all has caused health problems for him and his family.

“I have had a heart attack because of this and now I am on medication for the rest of my life,” he said. “My family are having nightmares and have had to get medication to help them sleep.”

Chris Tidman, Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust’s deputy chief executive, said: “We offer our sincere condolences to Mr Thompson. We have been in touch with him to discuss the issues he has raised around his wife’s care and treatment in our hospital.

“We have apologised to him for the lack of communication from our staff about what was happening with his wife’s care.

“We take feedback from relatives very seriously and if Mr Thompson would like to meet with senior members of our trust to further discuss his concerns, we will happily arrange a meeting.”