Hospital staff forcibly restrain dementia patient over nineteen times

A 77-year-old dementia patient has been forcibly restrained by security guards on 19 separate occasions at Kent's William Harvey Hospital in Ashford.

This comes after his requests for the restraints to be stopped were ignored. On one occasion a cloth was held over his head while his arms and legs were held so nurses could insert a catheter.

Although the hospital has now “unreservedly” apologised to the patient and his family, this is not the first time that East Kent Hospital Trust has been reprimanded for alleged mistreatment.

Hospital inspectors have recently taken legal action over its failure to stop the spread of COVID-19.And last week the Trust was charged with the responsibility for the death of baby Harry Richford after an independent investigation into maternity failures.