Son of 92-year-old man fails in bid to have hospital detain father until family can care for him

THE SON OF a 92-year-old patient in St James’ Hospital, Dublin, has failed in a bid to have a High Court judge direct the acute hospital detain his father until the family can find a care home for him.

Representatives of the hospital, which wants to discharge the patient, told Ms Justice Marguerite Bolger today that there were 36 acute patients waiting for admission to St James’ while the 92-year-old was unnecessarily taking up a bed in the hospital.

The patient’s son (no parties may be identified by order of the court) told Judge Bolger the hospital had made a discharge decision and to free up a bed and he feared his father’s health could deteriorate on returning to his home under the supervision of carers and his doctor.

The applicant for an injunction, restraining the hospital from sending his father home, said he would be exposed to risk while incapacitated to the extent of requiring a hoist to get him in and out of bed and being otherwise confined to a wheelchair while residing with one of his three sons.

The court heard that the elderly patient had been let down once before in his life by the State while in care in an orphanage where he had been abused and had received compensation from the Redress Board.

“That situation cannot be permitted ever again under any circumstances,” the applicant said.

He said his father was on a waiting list for a care home and he had been searching around for any other care home that might take in his father but such places seemed to shy away from any situation where there was no court order governing the patient’s welfare.

A hospital representative told Judge Bolger that the patient was due to have been discharged from hospital last week but that had to be postponed due to his having a hospital acquired infection. The patient had been in hospital for eight months since August last and there were now 36 acute patients awaiting admission.

He told the court that written evidence presented by the patient’s son had not disclosed any specific risk regarding the proposed home discharge.

The patient’s son said his father was very comfortable in St James’ and he was concerned that should he have to be taken back by ambulance to the accident and emergency department it would be extremely distressing for him.

“There is ongoing pressure on beds in acute hospitals which is a continuing challenge within the country on bed management,” Judge Bolger said. “St James’s has a number of patients waiting for acute hospital beds and needs to discharge patients in order to free up acute hospital beds.”

She said the applicant was in court as a caring son of the patient concerned and the court accepted he was genuinely concerned for the safety of his father but the court was being asked to detain a patient in hospital perhaps against his will.

“Your concern has been considered by the hospital and I have concerns in relation to your standing in circumstances where you do not have power of attorney,” Judge Bolger said. “The hospital says that if the at home situation does not work out then a nursing home place is an option.” 

Judge Bolger said the patient’s son intended to make applications to other care homes if appointed as a decision-making assistant by legal process. If the patient’s condition did deteriorate he could be returned to the hospital and while that may be upsetting she did not think it could be justified in directing an acute hospital to detain a patient who they considered fit for discharge.

The court had not been provided with any evidence of unsafe situations existing or arising in the patient’s home and she was refusing the application for an injunction restraining the hospital from discharging the patient.