AN investigation has been launched into how a seriously ill 92-year-old woman was discharged from hospital without proper home care arrangements.

The pensioner, whom the Echo has decided not to identify, had been in the Royal Bournemouth Hospital for just over a fortnight when she was sent home to north Bournemouth on a Friday afternoon.

Her daughter, who works full-time, claims she was assured the discharge would not take place until a full package of care had been arranged by Bournemouth Social Services.

She had not been given any instructions on how to deal with her mother's catheter bags and was concerned about an open pressure sore on her mother's heel.

When no help had arrived by early evening, she telephoned the ward sister at the Royal Bournemouth, who promised to ask a community nurse to call.

In a letter to social services in Bournemouth, the daughter said: "My husband and I were dismayed and furious to find no extra help had been arranged for that weekend. Owing to your department's total incompetence, a frail old lady had been put at risk and my family under considerable strain."

She told the Daily Echo: "When my mother came out of hospital she was virtually incapable of doing anything for herself. I couldn't manage on my own. It upset my mother in lots of ways."

Less than two weeks after leaving the Royal Bournemouth, her mother was admitted to Poole Hospital with a severe infection. She has since been transferred to Christchurch Hospital.

A spokeswoman for the Royal Bournemouth Hospital said: "We are obviously sorry to hear that the patient's relatives feel we did not deliver the level of service they would have wished for.

"The trust will work closely with our colleagues in social services to both understand and investigate this matter.

"We will ensure that any lesson that can be learnt leads to improvements in the service provided by both organisations."

Bournemouth Social Services' John Rynne said: "We very much regret what has happened, but this reflects the errors that occur in a service under enormous pressure.

"There was a breakdown in communication and we weren't fully aware of the patient's needs at the time of her discharge from hospital. We are investigating it further to avoid something like this happening again."

East Dorset Community Health Council spokeswoman Christina Hicks said: "We would be very concerned if people were being discharged prior to appropriate home care arrangements being put in place.

"If people have concerns about this or any other aspect of health care, they can contact us for advice."

Hospitals are under pressure to discharge elderly patients no longer needing acute care but are hampered by a shortage of care home places and delays in setting up care packages.