An elderly home care recipient in Mölndal lived with a dislocated shoulder for up to two weeks without the staff reacting. When a relative finally drove the person to the emergency room, it was too late to reset the shoulder, and instead surgery was required. The municipality has now self-reported the incident according to the Lex Maria regulation.

The person had been in pain for a long time and had difficulty using their arm, but the home care personnel visiting the home did not raise the alarm. This is reported by Sveriges Radio.

The injury was only discovered when a relative took the person to the emergency room, where medical staff determined that the shoulder was dislocated. By then, so much time had passed that it was no longer possible to reset it, and the person had to undergo surgery instead, according to the municipality’s Lex Maria report.

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It took up to two weeks before anyone reacted. In the report, the municipality itself admits that the patient had to wait an unnecessarily long time for treatment.

The Municipality: Home Care Should Have Reacted

Christina Wadell, operations manager for health and medical care in Mölndal city, says that it is the home care’s responsibility to react when something is wrong. She regrets what has happened and states that the objective is to ensure it never happens again.

Following the incident, the municipality will increase the staff’s knowledge in transfer techniques, that is, how to help someone stand up, sit down, or move safely. Staff will also be trained to better report when a user displays abnormal symptoms.

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