SIR,

Monmouth appears to be very proud of the new facilities at Monnow Vale.

My mother was recently transferred to the ward there from Nevill Hall, so imagine my high expectations.

The reality, however, falls very much below standard. After the cheerful friendly faces at Nevill Hall, it came as a shock to see that nearly all of the staff in the ward at Monnow Vale avoid eye contact. Only one nurse in three visits has actually smiled at me.

This seems to continue to the patients – my mother describes the staff as unobliging. She is in a room by herself with no-one to talk to, four plain cream walls with nothing on them to look at, a window measuring about 2ft square from which she can only see the top of a tree and no access to newspapers or books.

The local newsagent has stopped delivering due to lack of access.

More seriously, yesterday my mother was being washed – the nurse left her half naked, with the door wide open to the corridor, for half an hour.

When my mother said as much on the nurse's return, she was told she wasn't the only person on the ward.

This is unacceptable behaviour – an apology or something conciliatory would have been the correct response.

To top it all when I arrived at 3pm the wash was still incomplete. My mother was wishing herself back in Nevill Hall and she isn't the sort to feel sorry for herself.

The point is that there are people on that ward who are unable to speak up for themselves, and they must be receiving the same callous treatment.

So much for the government's drive for dignity to elderly people in the NHS system.

Joyce Compton

(Cwmbran)