ONE of the North Tyne’s most famous sons, the actor, Kevin Whately, is backing the launch of a major campaign to improve hospital care for people living with dementia – a condition that affected his late mother Mary.

The star of hit television shows including Auf Wiedersehen Pet, Lewis and Inspector Morse believes his mother, who lived in Humshaugh and died in July 2009, never fully recovered from an MRSA infection she picked up after being admitted to hospital for an emergency operation.

And now he is throwing his weight behind a bid by the Alzheimer’s Society to raise standards.

An investigation by the charity reveals too many people with dementia are falling while in hospital, being discharged at night or being marooned in hospital after their medical treatment has finished.

In addition to Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, a survey by the Alzheimer’s Society of people affected by dementia found that 92 per cent of respondents thought hospitals were frightening places for people with dementia.

Meanwhile over half (57 per cent) said they felt people with dementia were not treated with understanding and dignity in hospital.

Only two per cent reported that, in their experience, all hospital staff understood the specific needs of people with dementia.

A litany of failures in hospital care was reported, including instances of people with dementia being treated with excessive force and not being properly supported at mealtimes.

There was also evidence of patients not being provided with water in a way they could drink it.

Furthermore some were not given the right pain medication, or medications in the correct form; were left alone on wards or in busy A&E departments for hours or were left in wet or soiled sheets for long periods of time.

In response to these claims, the Alzheimer’s Society is launching its Fix Dementia Care campaign in the North-East.

FOI requests uncovered unacceptable variation in the quality of hospital care across England.

In one trust, 702 people with dementia fell in 2014-15, the equivalent to two falls per day.

Last year 28 per cent of people over the age of 65 who fell in hospital had dementia – but this was as high as 71 per cent in the worst performing hospital trust.

Independent analysis has shown that, on average, if a person with dementia falls while they are in hospital they spend nearly four times as long there and the resulting complications increase the likelihood of being discharged into residential care.

The FOIs also found that people with dementia are being inappropriately discharged at night.

Last year, in the 68 trusts that responded to this FOI request (41 per cent), 4,926 people with dementia were discharged between the hours of 11pm and 6am.

Ambassador for the Alzheimer’s Society, Kevin Whately, said: “My mother, Mary, who had Alzheimer’s disease, was hospitalised for an emergency operation and contracted MRSA.

“She was seriously ill for weeks and, despite fighting off the virus, because she’d been in a hospital bed for so long she’d forgotten how to walk – and she never walked again.

“This issue is very close to my heart – good quality dementia care must not be a postcode lottery.

“That’s why as an Alzheimer’s Society ambassador, I’m supporting their Fix Dementia Care campaign which aims to improve hospital care and reduce variation.

“I urge everyone to take action and join the campaign.”

Mary and her family came to live in the tiny North Tyne village of Humshaugh in the 1950s.

However, sadly, after a few years, her husband died on the platform at Newcastle railway station.

She then had the difficult task of bringing up four children on her own while holding down a teaching job.

Mary was always popular in the village and the people of Humshaugh to this day have always been proud of their connection with her and her famous son Kevin.

She lived in the North-East for 50 years before moving south to be closer to her family.

Regional operations manager at the Alzheimer’s Society, Hazel Cuthbertson, said there needs to be consistency across the country in meeting the needs of caring for people with dementia.

“Good dementia care should never be a throw of the dice – yet people are forced to gamble with their health every time they are admitted to hospital,” she explained.

The Alzheimer’s Society campaign wants to see hospital trusts publish an annual statement of dementia care, which includes feedback from patients with dementia, helping to raise standards of care across the country.

The regulators, Monitor and the Care Quality Commission should also include standards of dementia care in their assessments says the charity.

Hazel added: “Hospitals have a duty to be transparent and accountable to their patients, and to continually monitor and improve dementia care.

“While there are notable examples of excellent care across the country, the difference from one hospital to the next is far too great and there is inconsistent understanding of the needs of people with dementia.”

The charity is encouraging people to sign up to the campaign at www.alzheimers.org.uk/fixhospitalcare