Mrs A complained about the care and treatment that her father, Mr B, received from a GP surgery in the area of Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board. Specifically, Mrs A complained that prescribing her father with naproxen was inappropriate given his history of renal failure. She also complained that it was inappropriate not to prescribe him with a Proton Pump Inhibitor (“PPI”) and that the Surgery missed an opportunity to connect his swollen wrist and hand with renal failure on 21 September 2022.
The Ombudsman found that the decision to prescribe naproxen was not appropriate. The prescription was not at the lowest dose for the shortest possible duration. The decision not to prescribe a PPI was also not appropriate though it was found that had this been prescribed it would not have affected whether Mr B would have suffered adverse renal effects. Whilst the Ombudsman found that there was no recorded evidence that the Surgery missed an opportunity to diagnose renal failure, it accepted that this was possible.
Mrs A’s complaint about the Surgery was therefore upheld. The Ombudsman recommended that within one month the Surgery provides Mrs A with a meaningful apology for the identified failings, provides a meaningful update on the actions the Surgery has taken and to ensure all GP’s are up to date with the current guidelines in prescribing and monitoring naproxen, including prescribing PPI’s.