A SENIOR nurse says her dying partner was thrashing round in pain and suffered three horrendous days of apathy, neglect, and indignity before his death on a hospital ward.

Celia Gregory, who has lectured in nursing at Manchester University , said the care given to Ian Gregory was 'vile and negligent' before he died of cancer at Wythenshawe Hospital.

She said: "To see a loved one die in such horrendous circumstances is an appalling testament to nursing as it is being practised - or not - in today's modern healthcare arena."

She told how Ian, 72, was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer. The oesophagus is the tube that carries food and liquid to the stomach.

His greatest fear was dying in agony like his brother, John, who died from the same illness 25 years earlier.

Ian, a retired painter and decorator from Altrincham, had been in and out of hospital before being admitted three days before his death.

Celia, 64, said he was left thrashing around in pain with broken blisters. She said she drew up a round-the-clock rota with daughter Sharon to ensure one of them was always at his bedside.

She also says Ian was not given drinks, which were brought in by the family, was found unwashed and, apart from the last 90 minutes of his life, he was in distress and agony. She said: "The ethos of nursing now has gone too far away from the essence of nursing and its core values."

Celia, a theatre sister at a private hospital, has lodged a complaint with hospital bosses. They are investigating

She compared Ian's treatment to mental and physical abuse. She said: "Training isn't what it used to be, the health care assistants and nurses now don't have to pass exams. It's continuous assessment and nurses need 40 per cent to pass and health care assistants are trained on the job, which is the cheap option.

"When I qualified it was a three-year training course and we had to go to nursing school for 12 solid weeks, attend regular lectures and we had to pass state exams.

Taught

"We were taught to always attend to the basic needs of the patient, such as hygiene, comfort and alleviating pain. Our tutors always said `when nursing have in the back of your mind, no matter how difficult a patient is, this is somebody you love and would not want anything to happen to them'."

She never told ward staff she was a nurse because she did not believe she had to in order to ensure the man she loved `got the care he deserved'.

Celia has a degree in nursing and a teaching certificate, and lectured in nursing at Manchester University until the mid 90s.

She used to work at Wythenshawe but left after her daughter Lisa, 23, died in the accident and emergency department following a car crash 15 years ago.

Celia was working in another part of the hospital and rushed to A&E where she was physically restrained from being with her daughter.

She wrote an article about the death for a medical journal and it is credited with helping to change policy regarding relatives being allowed to see a dying patient.

A spokesman for Wythenshawe Hospital said officials had been in contact with Celia regarding her concerns about Mr Gregory's treatment.

He said: "The hospital has subsequently launched a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr Gregory's death.

"The trust will be meeting with Mrs Gregory to discuss her concerns. The trust sends its sincere condolences to Mrs Gregory and her family."

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