Vegetarian mum of Rab C Nesbitt star fed meat at Glasgow hospital

Rab C Nesbitt actress Elaine MacKenzie Ellis said staff shortages at the Lightburn Hospital mean nurses are "firefighting the entire time".

She said: "This isn't about the nurses, who are very kind and rushed off their feet. But they use a lot of bank staff and many of them are only there for one shift, so there's no continuity."

Ms Ellis, who is also known for appearing in Still Game and the film Sunshine on Leith, said she had raised a string of concerns with managers including that a diabetic sore on her mother's foot went undetected so long that her sock was "soaked in blood".

She said: "She was sitting there like Padre Pio with a big bloody sock.

"She'd had physio that morning, and they'd obviously not noticed the dried blood on her sock."

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Ms Ellis, 57, was also shocked to discover on reading the bedside feeding chart for her mother, Ishbel Ellis, that she had been served "chicken" despite being a strict vegetarian for more than 40 years.

She said: "I asked 'who gave my mum chicken?', and they said it was the day staff. I said she'd have eaten it thinking it was Quorn.

"I should never have given them that out because the next day they said 'oh, it was vegetarian chicken she was given' - but it wasn't.

"They've tried to give her fish before, and another time when I was there the girl came up and said to my mum 'mince or sweet and sour pork?'.

"I said 'my mum's vegetarian', but she said that was all they had left - they'd given all the spaghetti out.

"So she got mashed potato, mashed turnip, and a bit of sweetcorn.

"There's probably one octogenarian vegetarian in the whole ward - could they not serve her first, or keep her one? It's that basic person-centred care.

"She'd be distraught [about eating meat], because it's for moral reasons. She'd be sickened if she knew."

Elaine, pictured with her mother Ishbel Ellis, in 2021 (Image: Elaine Ellis)

Lightburn Hospital in the East End of Glasgow provides rehabilitation for older people following a hospital stay.

It has been saved from closure twice in the past 13 years, including when then health secretary Nicola Sturgeon intervened in 2011 to block plans by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to transfer its inpatient services to the city's Stobhill Hospital and Glasgow Royal Infirmary.

In 2018, the Scottish Government again rejected proposals by the health board to close the facility as a part of efforts to save £60 million and redesign community rehabilitation services.

However, whistleblowers have previously warned that there were too few nurses to safely look after the increasing number of dementia patients being sent to the facility.

Nonetheless, its most recent inspection - an unannounced visit in September 2020 - found that patients "appeared well cared for" and that mealtimes "were generally well-managed".

It is understood that there are no current discussions to close the hospital.

Elaine with her sister, Anne, who died in July 2022 following a Covid infection (Image: Gordon Terris/Herald&Times)

Ishbel was admitted to Glasgow Royal Infirmary at the end of November with delirium linked to a urinary tract infection.

On December 30, staff asked Ms Ellis for permission to transfer her mother to Lightburn for rehabilitation rather than wait for a place at Stobhill amid winter bed shortages.

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Ms Ellis, whose 60-year-old sister Anne - who had Asperger's and cancer - died from a Covid infection last July, said she had agreed reluctantly because another relative "hadn't had a good experience" at Lightburn.

Prior to falling ill, she said her mother - a retired school auxiliary and former chair of Sighthill Community Council - had enjoyed an "active life" as a charity shop volunteer and churchgoer.

Lightburn Hospital in the East End of Glasgow (Image: PA)

Ms Ellis hopes to finally get her mother home later this month, pending a care package being put in place, but said she wanted to speak up for the elderly patients who do not have family members to advocate for them.

She said: "I've seen my mum's mental health go down. At times she's said things like she wishes she was dead. She's also still grieving for Anne.

"It's not the fault of the nurses because they are working so hard, but the conditions are Dickensian.

"There's no reason to get out of bed. No activities. There's nothing to mark their day, apart from mealtimes.

"The physio is negligible, and there's absolutely none at the weekend.

"The rest of the time these ladies are in bed or sitting in a chair. I honestly don't know how they can call it a rehab unit.

"It feels like a dumping ground."

In a statement, NHSGGC said: "While we cannot discuss the individual circumstances of a patient’s care, we would like to apologise to Ms Ellis and her mother for any concerns they may have.

"As is the case across NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, all staff at Lightburn Hospital are committed to providing the best possible care for patients and support for their relatives.

"This case has been the subject of a formal complaints process, and we have shared our response with Ms Ellis.

"Staff at the hospital are in regular communication with Ms Ellis about her mother’s care, but if she has any further concerns we would encourage her to contact us."