Thursday, August 21, 2025
By LEANDRA ROLLE
Tribune Chief Reporter
lrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE family of an elderly woman who died in Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) after a month-long stay is criticising the care she received at the hospital and demanding answers on her death.
Relatives of 84-year-old Mable Bain, of Bowen Sound, Andros spoke to The Tribune yesterday, questioning how a relatively healthy woman ended up dead.
Photos and videos shared with The Tribune showed a deep bed sore on her lower body, a mouldy tiled ceiling and and audio recording of Mrs Bain allegedly screaming - conditions her family believes contributed to her demise.
“This was her first time inside the hospital in her entire life,” a close relative said. “I feel like they gone about her whole case the wrong way.”
According to relatives, Mrs Bain, who suffered from Alzheimers, was admitted to PMH on June 24th with a fractured hip and broken femoral neck after a fall.
She underwent minor surgery the day after admission, during which doctors drilled a titanium steal into her leg.
The family said weights were attached to hold the bone in place while awaiting the next surgery, which they claimed never happened.
Her son, Leroy Bain, told The Tribune doctors later informed them there were delays due to limited operating times and equipment.
“They said if anything becomes available, she is on the list to operate,” Mr Bain said
Medical scans needed for surgery were also delayed for weeks and the results were never shared, they added.
While waiting for surgery, Mrs Bain suffered significant blood loss and required three blood transfusions.
Later, the family was told she tested positive for syphilis.
“She ain’t had no man or nothing,” said Mr Bain, noting their father died from 1979. Medical experts told The Tribune that syphyllis transmission through hospital procedures are “virtually impossible” due to strict blood screening protocols and sterilisation.
As her stay dragged on, relatives said her condition worsened. She developed pneumonia, a severe cough and bed sores that escalated into a stage three ulcer and had to be placed on oxygen.
“Because of the steel in her leg it was difficult to move her but every time I went there I would reposition her so she could be as comfortable as possible,” he said.
He claimed she also contracted a urinary tract infection from a catheter, which led to blood in her urine. Experts say bed sores and urinary tract infections are not uncommon in elderly patients and can occur even if proper prevention measures are not followed. However, Mr Bain insisted that PMH is to blame, claiming his mother was not properly cared for and left in conditions unfit for patients, including a mouldy ceiling and dusty vents.
He said despite being on antibiotics, her health continued to decline.
On August 2, Mr Bain said he found his unresponsive mother during a morning visit. She, he said, was “looking into the sky just blinking” and not answering his calls.
Concerned, he alerted the nurses who told him she was sleeping.
“I say miss she ain’t sleeping she need help,” he said. “That’s when they came to her bed side, hooked up the heart rate monitor and tried to suction some cold off her chest.”
He said doctors were paged and one didn’t show up until 45 minutes later to recommend a scan.
An hour later, a scan was performed, but the family said they never received the result.
The next day, the family heart-wrenching news: Mrs Bain had died.
“My body went into shambles,” he said. “My mother was and is all I know. Every time I went up there she knew me. Yesterday she could not remember my name. The doctors called on their time. The nurses always said boy she is waiting on you to feed her because we couldn’t get her to eat.”
Mr Bain said the family needs to see his mother’s test results for closure on what happened.
“I know that’s a public hospital but something needs to be done. My mother didn’t deserve to die like that,” he said.
When contacted for comment, a Public Hospitals Authority official said the matter will be investigated but declined to address individual claims, citing patient privacy.
“Once the investigation is complete, our executives will communicate with the family directly. We wish to reiterate our commitment to always maintaining patient confidentiality. Any further update will be provided to the next kin,” she said.
Comments
tell_it_like_it_is says...
Sincere condolences to the family. <br/>
But the sad truth about PMH is anyone over 70, they treat pretty much like they are already in the grave. Anyone who could afford it should not send your loved one who is older there. Truly, they just don't care. SMH
Posted 21 August 2025, 4:36 p.m. Suggest removal
rosiepi says...
My sympathy to Mr Bain over the loss of his Mother. I do know the heartbreak of medical mistreatment or as in the care of his poor Mother- grossly inadequate treatment.
While blood loss can be common after pinning for a femoral neck fracture, the need for three transfusions seems excessive.
The terrible and very painful third stage bedsores, the UTIs, the onset of Pneumonia all indicate a fundamental failure to address and follow a proactive treatment plan (like constant repositioning & providing bed equipment to prevent/alleviate bedsores & the pain), as well as providing basic physician & nursing care required for such patients as Mrs Bain.
Her MD should have ordered a CT scan & complete blood work after the first transfusion, followed by more bloodwork & an MRI after #2 and #3!
Basic adequate nursing care includes monitoring patient vitals and given all that befell this poor lady at PMH that seems sorely lacking here.
The fact the nurses reported to Mr Bain that his Mum was sleeping when it sounds as if she had already been subsumed by shock is very telling.
One can only assume that Mrs Bain needed a hip replacement and her doctors, the PMH administration did not intend to provide such because of her age and/or it was contraindicated. Instead of being straight with her, her family they just waited for the inevitable.
The very least they should have done was to ensure the short time she had left on this earth was not one of excruciating pain.
And unfortunately given her Syphilis diagnosis it adds to a picture of a fundamental moral problem in this particular hospital.
We all experience the small embarrassing indignities that come in hospital, but the loss of one’s humanity is an entirely different plane of abuse. PMH didn’t respect Mrs Bain enough to care for her medically; worse, worse, they didn’t ensure that an elderly woman held bound in her bed by traction protection from rape.
Posted 21 August 2025, 5:22 p.m. Suggest removal
ThisIsOurs says...
"*they just waited for the inevitable*:
We should change our expectations. As I recounted this story to an individual in the US yesterday, they told me a funny story of an elderly relative who sustained a hip fracture. They said to themselves, "*well, I guess that's it*". But the individual had surgery, aftercare and went home. They then contracted pneumonia.. again, "*well that's it...*", treated and went home. They cited four incidents in total, any of which in our public system could have been the last for an elderly patient but where meticulous care brought the patient back to recovery.
"*The terrible and very painful third stage bedsores, the UTIs, the onset of Pneumonia all indicate a fundamental failure to address and follow a proactive treatment plan (like constant repositioning & providing bed equipment to prevent/alleviate bedsores & the pain), as well as providing basic physician & nursing care required for such patients as Mrs Bain*"
This was my first thought as I read this story. Any one of these things could happen to a well cared for patient.. well minus the massive bedsore... but for all of them to happen to one patient?? It would be interesting to know the timing between the discoveries. Because together they indicate a complete failure of the safety precaution mechanisms at the hospital. The nurses on that ward over the course of her stay should hang their heads in shame.
Almost 30 years ago now, a physician said to me that the most vulnerable community in the Bahamas are the elderly, because when they get sick, people "**expect**" them to die. So if malpractice is hidden anywhere in their treatment, nobody raises an alarm, "*it was just their time*".
I recall the case of Dr Perry Gomez. It is a sad one for someone who contributed so much. All of us will get old and most of us, no matter how wealthy, do not have sufficient funds to afford sustained **best** health attention, or long term hospital stays in this country, at an advanced age
**The current and next administration need to be consultative, level headed, thoughtful and stop/stay away from crackhead games (like building a hospital on property purchased from a land Barron contaminated with sewerage) when addressing the strategic planning around healthcare.**
Posted 22 August 2025, 4:58 a.m. Suggest removal
bogart says...
@rosiepi.Bingo on your opinion.
An important part of the hospitalization of the patient, stated by Mr. Bain the son "Because of the steel in her leg it was difficult to move her but every time I went there I would reposition her so she could be as comfortable as possible,” he said.
Posted 22 August 2025, 9:11 a.m. Suggest removal
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