'David was left to die'

Jamie Borthwick • Published 14 Apr 2010 15:00

THE family of a vulnerable man - who had not been seen for weeks before being found dead - have hit out at the system of care that "failed him".

The body of David Muir, 66, was found in his Clydebank home three weeks ago but he had been dead for some time.

The last appointment he had kept with Health and Social Care workers had been at the end of February, it was revealed this week - yet no alarm had been raised.

On the next two visits to his home care workers got no answer.

But it was only during the second visit on March 24 - after a concerned neighbour, who thought David had been taken into care, told the worker he had not been seen - that the grim discovery was made.

It seems likely that, if not for the neighbour, David's body would have remained undiscovered for longer.

It is unclear at what point the alarm would have been raised as appointments continued to be missed.

It was later established that David had died of pneumonia, but just how long he had been dead remains unclear.

However, the family believes, judging by the scene they "were left" to discover at his flat, it had been more than a week.

David was laid to rest in Clydebank on Wednesday and his family, speaking after the funeral, say he was let down by the system.

His sister Barbara Miller and her husband Peter are demanding to know why David - who had complex mental health difficulties - was allowed to go "off radar" for so long despite his "complex" and well-documented problems.

Barbara, 48, a Bankie who now lives in North Lanarkshire with her family, said it is "difficult to accept" he is gone.

She told the Post: "David could have had more years ahead of him.

"There had to be a reason he was left like that after dying.

"We have no desire to blame the people who worked with David but we believe if anything good can come of his death it is that the procedures for communicating between departments can be improved to stop it happening to others.

"It feels like he was maybe given too much independence - it was left until he became a danger to himself for them to act and bring him in again.

"The lows he was experiencing were too much."

A spokeswoman for West Dunbartonshire Council said David had complex social and health needs, and received regular support from health and social care staff.

She added: "Mr Muir was visited at the end of February by staff who accompanied him to the shops and he was in good spirits at that time.

"At the point of his next visit in early March he was not at home.

"This was not unusual as he often did not keep appointments, so not being in for one visit would not have caused concern.

"He was again visited at home towards the end of March when the care worker spoke with a neighbour and it became clear that all was not well and immediate action was taken to investigate."

David, who lived in Montrose Street, Drumry, had also been in the care of Goldenhill Resource Centre (GRC), Dalmuir, for many years.

The service for people suffering from a persistent or acute mental illness is run by Greater Glasgow and Clyde (GGC) health board.

The last contact GRC had with David was on February 25.

A GGC spokeswoman offered its condolences to David's family and said he was visited at home regularly by the community health staff, but would often miss appointments.

She added: "In the event of a missed appointment our health teams would liaise with Social Care colleagues."

A source in mental health services told the Post: "I believe the care workers should have followed up when he missed appointments.

"Even with his history it should have raised alarms and been looked into more closely."

A spokesman for Clydebank police said that Health and Social services would be the main contact for David but that police could help residents in such situations, if called upon by neighbours or care workers.

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This article appeared in Clydebank Post 14 Apr 10

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