'I'm scared my daughter will die in hospital': Carla Naoum's father Pierre speaks to the BBC

[Countrygirl]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9rry6lr54lo

'I'm scared my daughter will die in hospital'​

IMAGE SOURCE,PIERRE NAOUM
Image caption,
Carla Naoum's father is unhappy with the care she is receiving at West Middlesex University Hospital, saying she now weighs only 5st 9lbs
Liz Jackson
BBC News

• • Published
    11 July 2024

A man says he is terrified his daughter will die in hospital due to what he says are failures in care by NHS staff.
Pierre Naoum, 62, from Feltham in Hounslow, west London, says his daughter Carla, 23, who was diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), external, is in severe pain and now weighs about 5st 9lbs (35kg) - down from 8st 3lbs (52kg) - after being admitted to West Middlesex Hospital due to problems with her feeding tube.
Even though there are no ME/CFS specialists at West Middlesex University Hospital (WMUH) in Isleworth, west London, Mr Naoum says a psychiatrist assigned to oversee her care has insisted on removing accommodations for her condition such as reduced light, has suddenly reduced her opioid dosage to nothing, and told them she needs to "calm down".
A spokesperson for Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said it was working "alongside Carla and her family to provide the best possible care and support".
The BBC has gained Carla's consent for her parents to tell her story.
Warning: This article contains details that some readers may find distressing

IMAGE SOURCE,PIERRE NAOUM
Image caption,
Pierre Naoum says he worries "every single day" for Carla's well-being and health in hospital
The NHS says ME/CFS is a long-term condition with a wide range of symptoms including severe fatigue, chronic pain and cognitive issues - and Carla is towards the upper end of symptom severity.
Mr Naoum said his daughter used to be "a normal girl" who loved school and was "quiet, intelligent", but "full of life".
"Twenty-four hours she would have her face smiling; now she has not had a smile for two or three years," he told BBC London.
After Carla was diagnosed by specialists in Ashford and St Peter’s Hospital about eight years ago, she was treated at University College Hospital on a specialist ME/CFS ward for young adults until she became too old to qualify for the service and was discharged.
Other NHS hospitals and services have tried to treat her, but Mr Naoum says they told him Carla's condition was too severe to be handled within their service and also discharged her.

'Serious mistakes'.......................................​

This is the TV news item on Carla that was shown yesterday, 12th July 2024