Shocked father takes his own pillows and duvet into £170m hospital after finding son 'shivering under blood-stained sheets'

• James Handy, 74, took matters into his own hands because he was disgusted by the conditions at Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy, Fife
• Mr Handy's diabetic son William, 50, is receiving treatment at the hospital for porosis of the stomach
• William Handy claims a nurse told him that he would be 'lucky to make it out alive'
• James Handy alleges that a nurse told him that cleaners wouldn't enter the ward to clear up mess because they feared getting an infection
• Scotland's Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon has described the alleged incidents as 'completely and utterly unacceptable'
• NHS Fife has begun an investigation into the claims

A retired schoolmaster took his own pillows and duvet into a new £170million hospital wing because he was so shocked by the conditions in which his son was being treated.

James Handy, 74, said his son William, 50, was 'shivering' under blood-stained sheets at the Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy, Fife.

He also claimed that, when he raised concerns about mess on the ward, a nurse told him cleaners had refused to come in because they feared catching an infection.

Disgusted: James Handy brought his own pillows and duvet into the hospital because he was so alarmed at the conditions in which his son William was being treated

It is alleged that one nurse even joked to William Handy that he would be 'lucky to make it out alive'.

Scotland's Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon, who officially opened the hospital wing yesterday, has described the alleged incidents as 'completely and utterly unacceptable', and an investigation is under way.

Mr Handy, of Kilconquhar, Fife, made the complaint while his son, a diabetic, was receiving treatment for porosis of the stomach - a condition whereby his stomach often rejects food.

He took matters into his own hands by visiting a nearby shop and buying fresh pillows and a light duvet.

Patient: William Handy, who is being treated at the hospital for porosis of the stomach, claimed a nurse told him he would be 'lucky to make it out alive'

Mr Handy said: 'They said he couldn’t get an extra blanket or pillow because people had been stealing them.

'It was the same for the man in the next bed who has terminal cancer.

'There was blood on the pillow and blood on the sheets. The blood had turned black it was so old.

'Credit to the nurse. When I raised it she changed it straight away.

'But there was also debris on the floor, stuff like dust, and bits of paper.

'When I complained about this, the nurse said the cleaners won’t come in in case they catch an infection.'
The ward was colder than normal because of a fault with the wing's new heating system.

Mr Handy, a retired teacher for the deaf, said he also offered to purchase bedding for the gravely ill man in the bed next to his son, but the patient had already contacted his own family in a desperate bid to keep warm.

He said: 'My son, like each one of my children, is so important to me and the thought of him suffering makes me upset and very angry.
'We just had to speak up so that something was done and no one else has to endure this.

'You pay taxes hoping that when you need to use public services they will be there - but it's simply not the case.

Desperate measures: James Handy said he had to buy fresh bedding for his son after finding him 'shivering' under blood-stained sheets at Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy, Fife

'To think Nicola Sturgeon was swanning around pretending everything was great when this was all happening behind the scenes is just unbelievable.'
Mr Handy said his son was transferred to another ward over the weekend but had still had trouble getting extra bedding.

'They said he couldn’t get an extra blanket or pillow because people had been stealing them.' - James Handy

Speaking from his hospital bed, William Handy said he had been 'utterly dumbfounded' by the 'shocking' level of care.

He revealed that at one stage a male nurse even joked to him that he he would be 'lucky to make it out alive'.

I couldn't believe what he was saying to me,' he said. 'He had been moaning on about having to do his job and then, when he had to clean something off the floor, he made some remark to me and the chap beside me about the level of cleanliness and said we would be lucky to make it out alive.

'That is not an appropriate thing for a nurse to joke about.
'I have to have surgery later this week and it certainly didn't fill me with confidence.'

The member of staff has been reported to management.

Inquiry: Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon has described the alleged incidents at Kirkcaldy's Victoria Hospital as 'completely and utterly unacceptable'

William Handy said: 'I was visited by the head of nursing, who apologised personally and assured me an investigation was to take place but it's really too little too late.

'They spend millions and millions on a fancy new building but don't want to fork out for vital things such as clean bedding and enough staff.'

When asked about the allegations, Ms Sturgeon said: 'Obviously I don’t know all the details on this individual case but if that is the case then it’s completely and utterly unacceptable.'

NHS Fife's director of nursing, Caroline Inwood, said they were aware of Mr Hardy’s complaint and were investigating.

Mr Handy's complaint comes only a week after a patient at Forth Valley Royal Hospital, in Larbert, Stirlingshire, was told her operation was cancelled because medics had run out of bandages.

The woman, who asked not to be named, said that she spent more an hour being prepared for the operation before being told it was off.

A spokeswoman for NHS Forth Valley said it was 'sorry' that the operation was 'unable to proceed due to a temporary delay in the delivery of certain sterile bandages from the national NHS distribution centre'.