Decision Report 201600450

Summary

Mrs C complained that the board failed to provide her husband (Mr A) with appropriate wound care following his vascular surgery at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, both at the hospital and after he was discharged home. She said the board failed to respond appropriately when she and Mr A reported concerns about the way Mr A's wound was dressed. She said Mr A should have been referred to doctors to assess his wound and the possibility of re-suturing prior to his discharge from hospital.

We obtained independent nursing advice. The adviser said that the medical records indicated that Mr A's wound was healing well on discharge from hospital and when seen at home by the district nurse and it appeared that after this point, his wound began to dehisce (a surgical complication when the edges of a wound no longer meet).

The adviser considered that the board responded appropriately when Mr A and Mrs C reported concerns about the way Mr A's wound was dressed and that Mr A should not have been referred to doctors to assess his wound and the possibility of re-suturing prior to his discharge from hospital. The adviser said the nursing notes indicated that Mr A's wound was clean and dry on discharge from hospital and therefore there was no need for further review or suturing. We concluded that the board did not fail to provide Mr A with appropriate wound care following his vascular surgery. We therefore did not uphold Mrs C's complaint.