Gry Nupen never got to say goodbye to his father. He was admitted to Volda hospital in the autumn two years ago with pneumonia. But what the family thought was a short hospital visit, even though the 82-year-old died. The night before the hospital had planned to discharge him, staff found him in the stairwell inside the hospital. – We don’t actually know how long he was there, whether he lived a long time and perhaps cried out for help, says Gry Nupen on behalf of the family. Nupen says they had to ask several times before they got the right record for the father. When they read what was written, they were stunned. Gry Nupen is unable to come to terms with the death of her father at Volda hospital. Photo: Jonas Otneim / news Get out of the hospital news has gone through the records of Sverre Nupen, who has been admitted to Volda hospital for three weeks. There, it has been noted several times that he does not keep his bed, but is confused, unclear and out and about. Several times he is found in other patient rooms, and has to get help back. Other times he goes to the elevator. One night, the feverish and confused man comes out of the hospital completely, and stands ringing at the front door in the darkness of the night. Nowhere in the record does it say that the staff assessed the risk or any measures for the 82-year-old who was constantly walking around the hospital. Here at Volda hospital, the 82-year-old man died in an unattended staircase. Photo: Remi Sagen / news Not allowed to sit on duty Gry Nupen himself works as a night watchman in the healthcare system and asked to sit on duty at his father’s hospital bedside. Although he was uneasy, the hospital said no because of the corona pandemic. The daughter says the employees promised to look after him, among other things by using a ring cord attached to his shirt. – Three days later I was told that they had found him downstairs – dead, says the daughter. She thinks it could have saved her father’s life if she had been allowed to watch over him. She is critical of the fact that neither the police nor the Norwegian Health Authority were notified of the death. Clinic manager Palma Hånes apologizes to the relatives. She does not want to be interviewed about the matter. Photo: Kristin Støylen Regrets what happened Management at the hospital in Volda does not wish to be interviewed, and will not answer specific questions about the case. Clinic manager Palma Hånes writes in an e-mail that they take the incident very seriously and offer their deepest apologies to the relatives. – This has been a demanding matter for our employees as well, and Klinikk Volda has implemented several measures after the incident with shell protection and a review of our routines to prevent such an incident from happening again, she writes. In an internal memo, Hånes writes that the patient should never come down the stairs without supervision. Here are the questions the hospital management does not want to answer: How could it happen that this patient got out on a flight of stairs and died, without anyone knowing? It appears from the record that in the days before the man was constantly walking, in the corridors, in other patient rooms, in stairwells and outside the hospital. How could it happen when the hospital was supposed to look after him and knew that, according to the medical record, he was ill and sometimes confused and unclear? The family say they were told that an alarm cord was attached to his shirt, so that the employees were notified when he calmed down, is that correct? The family says they were promised that the case would be reported to the police. Why wasn’t it done? The daughter says she asked to sit in her father’s room to look after her. Why didn’t she get it? They have since installed new locks. Are they sure that it is sufficient to prevent something like this? Complaining again The autopsy report does not give a clear answer to Sverre Nupen’s sudden cardiac arrest. The hospital points to a previous medical history, but does not know whether he died before or after the fall. The family say they are left with many questions, even though they have had a meeting with the staff at the hospital. The state administrator who investigated the case concluded that the hospital had put in place sufficient measures to avoid something similar. The family is now working on a new complaint. – This does not belong anywhere. We are all shocked. He has not been looked after, says daughter Gry Nupen on behalf of the family. Gry Nupen was the only daughter of Sverre Nupen. She finds it a good comfort to look at the picture of the two of them together. Photo: Jonas Otneim / news
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Sverre (82) died on the stairs inside the hospital
