Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry|Health and social care|21 November 2023 (morning session)

Extremely moving testimony from Verona Gibson who speaks about the harrowing voice recordings made by her disabled daughter 'imprisoned' in a care home.

NB: Still playing catch-up with testimony from 2023 health and social care hearings.

Introduction

Verona Gibson is giving evidence to the inquiry about her experiences in relation to seeing her 39yo daughter during lockdown who has complex needs (anxiety, a history of self harm) and a learning disability. She is unable to walk and confined to a wheelchair. She has been a care home resident since 2009. The care home locked down on 16th March 2020 thereafter to the detriment of her wellbeing.

‘‘I have several recording clips of my daughter's voice which are also available if required. My daughter would like to have her voice heard by the inquiry. She attended two meetings with Scottish Government officials and sent various recordings to the Government explaining how she was feeling and what she felt her imprisonment was doing to her.’’

‘‘Some of the recordings are of my daughter on a call to me asking for help to get out, for hugs and to see her family. She is distressed during these calls and is sobbing in some of them.’’

-Paragraphs 87-88 of statement

‘‘However, sending those did not result in any changes for her and she felt that throughout the pandemic no-one was listening to her. I have copies of those recordings.’’

-Paragraph 117

You can hear Ms.Gibson speak of those voice recordings below.

Testimony highlights

• Mask issues

• ‘Upsetting’ desperate video calls from daughter

• ‘Dystopian’ visiting rules

• Lockdown mental health deterioration

• Family concerns put forward to public health and others ignored

• Christmas 2020 presents had to be sanitised

‘‘She hated masks…she never saw a member of staff without a mask on for two years.’’

‘‘This felt dystopian to be quite honest with you…it was just completely unnatural.’’

‘‘To be sat on a chair, not allowed to move, not allowed to go near her, not allowed to cuddle her, not allowed to touch her even.’’

‘‘Your sister observed everyday your daughter looked more and more unwell and had talked to her of giving up.’’

‘‘My most vivid moment of (Christmas 2020) was my daughter sobbing whilst attempting to open her presents…i was not permitted to help her.’’

‘COVID’ totalitarianism

• No independence

• No freedom

• Prolonged isolation led to Ms.Gibsons daughter requring sedative medication

‘‘She wasn’t free to leave her home, she wasn’t free to choose what she did with her day…she was beholden to a set of rules being applied across the board.’’

Shocking recordings

Here Ms.Gibon recites the desperate please made by her daughter to the government who was imprisoned in her care home.

‘‘The Impact on my daughter was enormous. It was sad to know that she felt her home now felt like a prison.’’

-Paragraph 69 of statement

‘‘Where were the organizations who were there to protect vulnerable groups. The Human Rights Commission and the Mental Welfare Commission were conspicuous by their absence.’’

-Paragraph 113

As her health was deteriorating government officials were made aware of this evidence yet no changes were implemented to improve conditions.

‘‘It’s making me sick and anxious..it’s effecting me in a big bad way.’’

‘‘I’m down on my knees. It’s destroying my life…it’s getting too much now…i feel like i’ve lost my family.’’

Closing statements

• No human rights

• Powers of attornery compromised

‘‘Her life pre COVID was completely dismantled…i don’t know how my daughter survived.’’

‘‘I felt as if there was always barriers in place preventing my daughter getting out of the care home…the authorities were all aware of the impact continued IMPRISONMENT was having on my daughter’s mental and physical health..tests and vaccines did not seem to be making much difference.’’

‘‘I would like to know why people who knew how the restrictions were effecting her thought it was ok to lock my daughter up for 14 months.’’

Statement highlights

‘‘By August 2020, I had only seen her in person for two hours in total over a five-month period.’’

-Paragraph 37

‘‘It felt like the local public health department was taking no notice of the risks to my daughters mental and physical well-being by ignoring risk assessments and emails and continuing to apply blanket bans to residents. I feel that they showed no regard for my daughter's mental or physical welfare.’’

-Paragraph 55

‘‘I have photographs of my daughter which are available to the inquiry if required. They show her during Covid and reflect how sad and depressed she looks. This is very different to the photos of her taken before and after the pandemic.’’

-Paragraph 83

‘‘It took until May 2021 - 14 months after the initial lockdown to get permission for my daughter to leave the care home.’’

-Paragraph 107

‘‘My daughter was subjected to blanket bans with no recognition of her individual rights or needs.’’

-Paragraph 109

‘‘Her human rights were completely thrown under a bus.’’

-Paragraph 110

‘‘I do feel a serious question that needs to be asked is, what was the plan if there had been no vaccinations. Would residents have been confined forever?’’

-Paragraph 112

‘‘No-one should ever be imprisoned in a care home in the way that residents were during the pandemic.’’

-Paragraph 128

Media reports

There was an effort to cover this testimony online in the Daily Record.

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