THE family of an elderly man suffering from dementia said they are horrified his gold bracelet was stolen while he was treated at Royal Blackburn Hospital.

And they are angered a ‘Do Not Attempt Resuscitation’ order was placed on his notes without them being consulted by doctors.

Craig Fielding said he had taken a photo of his father Leslie, 79, in the Medical Assessment Ward at the hospital wearing his trademark chunky gold necklace and bracelet for his mother.

But when he visited the following morning he said the bracelet was missing.

Craig said: “The care home where he is stopping had sent a nurse to be with him in the hospital. I took over at 6.15pm.

“He fell asleep and I took a picture of him to show my mum who has pancreatic cancer.”

Craig said when he next saw his father after a CT scan the bracelet, which his 74-year-old wife Irene had given him about 10 years before, wasn’t there.

“From him being moved on the assessment ward it had gone missing,” Craig said.

He has reported the theft to the police, who are already investigating an incident where gold rings were taken from invalid grandma Margaret Houghton, 90, while she was bed-bound at either a nursing home or while she was staying at the Blackburn hospital.

Craig, 46, from Church, said the DNAR order should also not have been put on his father’s notes without the family, his care home or GP being consulted.

He said: “He went into hospital because he was leaning to one side and they thought it might be a mini stroke, but it was old age and he was there eating his breakfast and dinner and having conversations. The DNAR was a real shock.

“Knowing it has been stolen makes me very annoyed and angry. If it had just been lost it would have been found by now.”

John Timmins, managing director of Townfield and Coach House care home in Great Harwood, said: “During his stay in hospital a large gold bracelet was taken from Leslie Fielding.

“Leslie was discharged back into our care on Friday, July 3, and was sent home with discharge notes and a DNAR order.

“The order had not been discussed with Leslie or his relatives, which is normally good practice to do so, or with other medical professionals such as Leslie’s own family doctor.

“Since Leslie has returned to Townfield we have spoken to Leslie, his wife and sons and also his family doctor and the decision has been made that Leslie would not benefit from having a DNAR order in place and therefore this has been removed by the family doctor.”

Craig, a single dad who looks after his three children, said he hoped his father would return home to Clayton-le-Moors soon, but it was all dependent on how his mother recovered from her cancer.

He is also planning to claim for compensation from the hospital for the loss of the gold bracelet he said would cost £650 to replace.

Russ Mclean, the chair of the Pennine Lancashire Patient Voices Group, said: “I have been campaigning for a number of years for conversations to be had between patents, families and doctors over the use of a DNAR.

“It’s appalling that it does not happen and it’s very distressing for families to come across them without any warning.

“There needs to be a legal requirement that doctors have to consult the patient and family before placing one on their notes.

“Regarding the theft. If it was stolen then it’s a despicable and disgusting thing to have happened and it’s horrible that anybody could be capable of such a crime.”

Dr Damian Riley, medical director at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “We are sorry that the experience of Mr Fielding fell short of the high standards we aim to deliver to all the patients we care for.

“East Lancashire Hospitals Trust is always keen to hear the concerns of patents and their relatives so that we can continually improve the quality of services.

“Our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) will continue to liaise with Mr Fielding and his son.”

A spokeswoman for Lancashire Police said the theft of the bracelet had been reported.

She said: “We are working with the hospital to get more information.”