A DISABLED councillor who survived a string of strokes has hit out after being “locked out” of a hospital in the freezing cold.
Barnard Castle’s George Hallimond suffered a severe stroke before Christmas and spent the next month in and out of the region’s hospitals.
The town councillor is slowly on the mend but was angered about being shut out of Bishop Auckland hospital for more than an hour and what he saw as “missed opportunities” to prevent further strokes. Mr Hallimond said: “I was out of it for about 10 days – my daughter came to visit me and I didn’t know she’d been. The first Friday after Christmas I went out for a smoke at 8.40pm and heard a porter shout outside that the doors were locked at 8pm.
“It was freezing cold and snowing – about minus four degrees. I was locked out in my pyjamas.”
The 60-year-old said he thumped the door but no one could hear him. A porter finally became aware of his plight an hour and a half later – by which time he had lost all feeling in his fingers.
“There was a plaque on the outside saying ‘caring for people’ – I didn’t think so,” he added. The grandfather-of-two was discharged from hospital a few days later but suffered another severe stroke just 24 hours after being released.
An MRI scan was called for but Mr Hallimond said that was delayed by five days – by which time he’d lost much of his eyesight. He added: “Before they did the scan they told my wife I had alcohol withdrawal – but I’d only been out of hospital for one day before my stroke and I’d been in hospital for three weeks before that. The whole thing was just chaos – I was left out in corridors waiting for beds.
“They keep putting adverts on television about the importance of time in responding to strokes but apparently time did not matter.”
A spokesperson for County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust said: “It is common practice to lock hospital doors overnight in the interests of keeping patients and staff safe. However, there is always a route of access for entry and exit at Bishop Auckland Hospital. This is through the urgent care centre after 8pm as there is a manned reception desk. In light of Mr Hallimond’s experience we will ensure signage is put in place.”
The trust said it could not comment on scans due to patient confidentiality but would be happy to discuss any issues with him.
