Brithdir care home inquest: Resident "looked like prisoner of war"

Stanley Bradford had been a resident of the Brithdir care home for a few months when he died

An elderly man "looked like something out of a prisoner of war camp" when he was taken to hospital from a care home in Caerphilly where alleged neglect took place, an inquest has heard.

Gaynor Evans said she was "physically sick" when she saw how thin her father had become in August 2005.

Stanley Bradford, 76, had only been at Brithdir care home in New Tredegar for three months when he died.

A Newport inquest is hearing evidence into the deaths of seven residents.

The former miner and grandfather to 14 grandchildren was described as a "cheerful man with a very wicked sense of humour", but his health deteriorated when he had a stroke in 2001.

Mrs Evans explained how her father had previously been cared for in another home but needed to be moved for full nursing care.

She said she was "shocked" at her father's frail appearance after a few months at the home and that she "ran out of the room and was sick".

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The inquest heard his weight had been good before he moved to Brithdir and there was no evidence of pressure sores.

Mrs Evans said they chose the home because it was close to where they lived, but they quickly became worried.

"We used to go everyday between three and four and stayed until about seven or eight," she said.

"On those occasions we were there, it was very rare we'd see any carers."

She said it was "very rare" to see anyone come in to feed her father.

She added that her father "was very quiet and withdrawn" and "didn't look happy at all".

"He didn't took very clean a lot of the time. He deteriorated over the weeks that he was there. I used to come home and cry and say 'I think he's starving to death'," she told the inquest.

The inquest into deaths at the care home comes after a major police investigation

During his stay in hospital in August 2005, it also became clear that Mr Bradford had pressure sores to his heels - something Mrs Evans told the inquest the family had previously known nothing about.

Mr Bradford eventually returned to Brithdir care home, until he died in September 2005.

Mrs Evans said when she told her father he would be going back to the home, he looked at her and said "please don't take me back there".

Evidence from Stanley Bradford's former wife Hazel was also read to the inquest court. She visited him every day despite their separation.

"Never once do I remember anyone swabbing Stanley's mouth," she said.

"Sometimes I would get a swab and put some water or squash on it. He would suck on it as if his life depended on it. His mouth would be as dry as a bone. I really believe they forgot all about him. The door to his room was always closed."

Mr Bradford has a "wicked sense of humour" but his health deteriorated following a stroke in 2001

The inquest heard the family checked fluid records, which appeared to show Mr Bradford had been given a drink at times when relatives were visiting and no staff member had entered the room.

The coroner's court heard Mr Bradford's cause of death in 2005 was given as bronchopneumonia.

The inquest is hearing evidence into the deaths of a seven former residents, including Stanley James, 89, June Hamer, 71, William Hickman, 71, Edith Evans, 85, Evelyn Jones, 87, and Matthew Higgins.

The hearings are expected to last until March.