Councillor claims his father's belongings were stolen at Walsall Manor Hospital
A furious Walsall councillor believes his terminally ill father has had personal items including false teeth and glasses stolen while being treated in hospital.
Councillor Carl Creaney said his 89-year-old dad, Harry, has had valuables, such as jewellery including his wedding ring, taken from the ward he is being treated in at Walsall Manor Hospital.
But, more recently, items such as his teeth, hearing aids and glasses have also gone missing.
Councillor Creaney says he believes the items have been stolen and added he is keen to get his father home but he claimed hospital bosses won’t sanction it due to the family’s lack of capacity to look after him.
A spokesman for Walsall Hospitals NHS Trust apologised for any upset caused and said they were working to resolve issues.
Two weeks ago, the family was devastated to discover Mr Creaney has got terminal cancer of the brain.
Mr Creaney has been at the hospital for almost six months having first been admitted with a bladder infection. Back in July, Councillor Creaney complained about a catalogue of errors he claimed he happened in his father’s treatment.
Dignity
He said: “Since he’s been in hospital, they’ve lost his hearing aids, lost his glasses, lost his teeth, lost his wedding ring, necklace, lost his bracelet, lost the lot in the wards.
“If they’re not in the safe or the wards, obviously they’ve been stolen. They can’t find them. They said they’ve been misplaced but where?
“How on earth have they lost his hearing aids, glasses, false teeth? They’ve stripped him of his dignity.
“It makes me wonder if other patients are going through something like this too.”
He added: “My dad wants to go home but they are saying we haven’t got the capacity to look after him.”
Ann-Marie Riley, interim director of nursing for Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust, said: "We fully understand Councillor Creaney’s frustration and are deeply sorry for any upset caused.
"We are working through a number of issues in relation to his father, however we are unable to share the detail.
"Our duty, and current priority, is to protect patient confidentiality and act in the patient’s best interests."
