Senior nurse who worked at care home faces disciplinary hearing

A senior care-home nurse is facing a disciplinary hearing after he allegedly failed to get treatment for an elderly woman’s gangrene-infected leg.

Doctors were forced to amputate 77-year-old Annie Wood’s foot after she suffered in pain for several days at Glencairn Nursing Home, Fraserburgh.

Registered nurse John Nicolson is accused of not calling in a GP to examine Mrs Wood, despite her complaints, or getting advice from management at the care home.

It is also alleged Mr Nicolson, who no longer works at Glencairn, did not provide the patient with appropriate pain relief at the time.

Mrs Wood died several weeks after her surgery in May 2006.

Mr Nicolson, 49, is now due to appear before the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s conduct and competence committee in Edinburgh.

It is alleged his ability to practise has been impaired by the allegations against him.

Soon after her death, Mrs Wood’s family called for an independent inquiry into claims that staff at the care home had not taken her complaints seriously.

Mrs Wood’s daughter, Morag Fraser, of High Street, New Pitsligo, said her mother was simply told to stop making a fuss when she complained about her sore leg. She claimed nursing staff thought she was “putting on” her condition and was simply reluctant to get up and walk.

Care Commission chiefs later backed up the family’s allegations after an extensive inquiry. They ruled that a member of staff had failed to appropriately assess Mrs Wood’s foot and provide appropriate care.

The watchdog, an independent regulator of care homes, upheld a catalogue of complaints made by Mrs Wood’s family. In their damning report, inspectors wrote: “Due to the lack of assessment, care planning and liaison with other healthcare professionals, staff failed to meet the needs of Mrs Wood’s deteriorating condition in a consistent and planned manner.”

They found daily notes indicated concerns raised by relatives about Mrs Wood’s pain, confusion and general condition were “not taken seriously” and no medical attention was sought.

Mrs Wood, known to friends and family as Nanny, was eventually taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary after her symptoms became more visible. There, doctors found her leg had become seriously infected with gangrene and, just three hours after her arrival, she had surgery to remove her foot.

A Nursing and Midwifery Council spokeswoman said last night that Mr Nicolson had been due to appear before the committee earlier this month. But the case has been adjourned and a new date has yet to be set.