21 godzin temu
A Scottish woman who lost both parents to Covid-19 within 17 days has described the "cruel" impact of seeing Downing Street party photos taken on the day her mother died. Rhona Arthur gave evidence to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry on Wednesday, representing Scottish Covid Bereaved families.
The inquiry, chaired by Baroness Heather Hallett, is examining the pandemic's impact on the care sector in its final week of hearings. Arthur's testimony highlighted the devastating personal toll of the crisis on bereaved families.
Parents lived together in care home
Arthur told the inquiry her father William and mother Violet were both living in the same Scottish care home when the pandemic began in 2020. Her mother had moved into the facility following a long hospital stay in 2017, with her father later choosing to join her there.
"They were devoted to each other," Arthur said. "They were a pair of bookends, and one was not very helpful without the other, so he chose to move into the nursing home beside her."
Father's rapid deterioration and death
William Arthur tested positive for Covid-19 on 30 April 2020 after developing a "slight temperature" and was admitted to hospital the same day. His daughter recalled speaking with him that afternoon when he was doing "quite well", but within hours he began to deteriorate rapidly.
He died in hospital on 3 May 2020, aged 90. Arthur had "no other option" but to break the devastating news to her mother over the phone, with care home staff providing emotional support during the call.
Mother's death during father's funeral
Violet Arthur tested positive for Covid-19 on 9 May. As her daughter was entering the crematorium for William's funeral on 18 May, the care home called to say Violet's health was a "cause for concern".
Two days later, another call came to say her mother's oxygen levels had "dropped" and the home offered an end-of-life visit. Arthur said she "paused" to inform other family members, but less than half an hour later the care home called again to say her mother had died, aged 93.
Devastating impact of double loss
Asked about the impact of losing both parents, Arthur said: "For a long time, I described it as being like a house with the roof ripped off, because that's just that kind of idea about how empty and devastating a double loss is." She explained the difficulty of discussing such trauma with others.
"People say, 'what happened to you during Covid?' You cannot just say to somebody, 'well, actually, both my parents died within a fortnight.' It's a complete and utter and devastating blow in a conversation."
Downing Street party photos felt "cruel"
Arthur was asked about seeing photos of a Downing Street drinks party held on the day her mother died. "It just felt so cruel that we had done all the right things, that we had followed all the rules, down to the funerals, to then see that," she said.
"And of course, that picture is regularly reprinted, which means that it just brings that terrible day back all the time." The inquiry continues its examination of the pandemic's impact on care homes and bereaved families.
(PA) Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
