Falkirk COVID-19 baby sleeps on floor during 10-hour A&E wait

The father of the baby contacted The Falkirk Herald regarding his partner’s experience when she took their 10-month-old baby to FVRH A&E on Wednesday, June 29, going into Thursday, June 30.

NHS Forth Valley said the baby was seen and assessed when he and his mother arrived at the hospital and the mother was placed in a room with a chair, despite claims she had to sit on a concrete floor.

The father said: “My son had difficulty breathing with COVID-19 during the night so we called NHS 24 – they were concerned by the symptoms and sent out an ambulance. The staff were great and checked him over and advised they had to take him in to get a full check over done.

"Only one parent was able to go so his mum went with him. She was there for over seven hours and nobody had seen my son. My partner and son were taken in by an ambulance and put in a room with nowhere for my partner or my 10-month old son to sit.

"This meant my partner was sitting on a concrete floor holding our son, who has breathing issues due to COVID-19 for seven hours and still had not been seen.

"When she spoke to the reception at the hospital she was told they couldn’t give her a bed for her or my son due to him having COVID -19. We are two-and-a-half years

down the line now and they still can't cater to patients and neglect infants and use COVID-19 as an excuse.

"I genuinely can't believe how bad a service and how much patient neglect there has been for a 10-month-old who was taken in by ambulance at the request of the ambulance staff."

Mother and infant son were eventually discharged after waiting 10 hours in the hospital.

The father said: “Thankfully he is okay now. The doctor who eventually saw him was on a different shift and even he advised how disgraceful it was and that we should take it further.”

An NHS Forth Valley spokesperson said: "Staff have apologised to the family for the longer wait they experienced prior to being discharged and have offered to meet with them to discuss any further changes or improvements which could be made for families attending with young children during very busy periods.

"Our Emergency Department has been exceptionally busy over the last week dealing with a high number of patients who required immediate, life-saving care. However,

all patients who attend are assessed by an experienced senior nurse to establish their clinical priority and regular observations are carried out by nursing

staff while patients are waiting to be reviewed by a clinician.

"Any patients who have tested positive or are suspected of having COVID-19 are asked to wait in separate waiting areas, including triage rooms, which all have chairs

and additional chairs or cots can be brought in, if required.

"Patients, including those with COVID-19, can also be moved to other assessment areas, however, this would not normally be arranged for individuals who are

expected to be discharged home after a further review."