The mother of Big Brother star Nikki Grahame has spoken out over how she begged nurses to not let her daughter leave the hospital.
Sue Grahame, 66, spoke to nurses about not discharging Nikki but the decision was made for her to leave just hours before her death.
Nikki was struggling with anorexia at the time and Sue believes the decision made to discharge her from Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester, may have led to her death.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with The Sunday Mirror, Sue said: “I am destroyed. There’s part of me that’s lost forever.
“My fight to get Nikki well started 30 years ago. In the end, I lost her. It has been the fight from hell.”
(Image: @NikkiGrahame /Instagram)
She continued: “The nurses were amazing but I told every single one, ‘She mustn’t go home. She’s too ill’.
“Her father even called and told the hospital, ‘If you let her leave, Nikki will die’. But they still threw her out.”
Nikki, who was a contestant on Big Brother in 2006, was found unconscious at her home on April 9.
She was admitted to hospital two weeks before her death after she fell and fractured her lower spine on her way to visit her mum in Bridport, Dorset.
(Image: Mike Marsland/WireImage)
Sue was told that due to her weight, the incident was life-threatening with 38-year-old Nikki weighing the least since she developed into adulthood.
An internal investigation at the hospital is being conducted and Sue is awaiting the results.
Sue has been looking into Nikki’s discharge notes and found her daughter had a series of medical issues, including bradycardia, hypoglycemia, cracked pelvis, wedge fracture to the spine and there were worries over her spine.
Nikki wanted to go home alone to her flat in Stanmore, Harrow, following her discharge, despite Sue’s request for Nikki to come home with her.
(Image: Getty Images)
Sue’s last conversation with Nikki was over the phone at 3.30am.
She called Nikki later that morning but got no answer so she contacted a friend who had keys to her daughter’s flat.
The friend found Nikki unconscious and called for an ambulance but it was too late.
She suffered further tragedy after losing her ex-husband David to pancreatic cancer just nine days after Nikki died.
(Image: Getty Images)
Sue is now calling on the government to offer better funding for mental health provisions and is supporting anorexia survivor Gemma Oaten, who wants eating disorder awareness classes to be part of the National Curriculum.
She said: “Nikki isn’t the first to be let down, and she won’t be the last.”
Sue continued: “Attitudes of professionals must be reviewed. A deeper understanding of the illness and… victims’ suffering is vital.
The NHS Foundation Trust behind Dorset County Hospital confirmed a full internal investigation into Nikki’s care is underway.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
