Great-grandmother, 100, died of dehydration in hospital 'because her water jug broke' and staff took 10 days to put her on a drip Lydia Spilner was admitted to Leicester Royal Infirmary in January 2012 She had a treatable chest infection but her condition rapidly deteriorated Her daughter, Nora, says she was left without access to any water Was so dehydrated her skin cracked but took 10 days to be put on a drip She died of kidney failure caused by the dehydration four weeks later Lydia Spilner, 100, was admitted to Leicester Royal Infirmary in January 2012 after she developed a chest infection A great-grandmother who went into hospital with a chest infection died of dehydration - after she was left without water because her jug had broken. Lydia Spilner's family claim they begged nurses at Leicester Royal Infirmary to put Mrs Spilner, 100, on a drip after she was left without access to water, and became so dehydrated her skin started to crack. But by the time she was finally hooked up to a drip ten days later, it was too late, and the great-grandmother suffered kidney failure as a result of dehydration, and died. The hospital has admitted that basic care failures led to Mrs Spilner's death but her daughter, Nora, claims that her mother was subjected to a catalogue of failures in basic care. She claims that the pensioner was left lying in urine-soaked sheets for hours, left without access to water, and that she even found her with food caked into her hair. She also says that she was forced to alert nurses after finding her mother had slipped and fallen under her hospital bed - but nurses failed to notice where she was. Nora, from Harborough, Leicestershire, said: "I can't forgive the way my mum's condition was allowed to deteriorate with very little thought given to her dignity. I do not accept that it was her time to die and she certainly did not deserve to go like she did. The way she was looked after was appalling. The nurses didn't show her an ounce of compassion. My mum deserved better and I hope the nurses who were responsible for her care are thoroughly ashamed of themselves. In January 2012, Mrs Spilner developed breathing problems. A chest infection and possible fluid on the lungs were suspected and she was prescribed water tablets. However, the medication caused her to suffer severe dehydration and by 27th January her speech had become confused, so her family were advised to take her to hospital. Her daughter, Nora (pictured by Mrs Spilner's grave with her grand-daughter, Amy), says that her mother was left without water and that it took ten days for her to be hooked up to an IV drip despite the fact she was severely dehydrated Nora said: "The A&E doctors explained that her confused speech was a clear sign she had become dehydrated. They put her on a drip and within just two hours she was back to her normal self. In hindsight, I wish I had taken her back home then, because I firmly believe I could have taken better care of her and she would still be alive today. Instead I put my trust in the hospital and allowed her to be moved to an elderly care ward, thinking she would be in good hands and they would be able to sort out her chest infection. Mrs Spilner was transferred to ward 31 of Leicester Royal Infirmary, where Nora visited her every day and soon became alarmed that her mother's condition was again deteriorating. She said: "One afternoon when I visited, I noticed that she had no water near her bed that she could drink. I requested a jug from the nurse but she said the jug was broken and they had no others available. Her skin was becoming dry and cracked and it was clear to me she was very dehydrated. I pleaded with the doctors to put her back on a drip but it took ten days for them to take action. Nora also claims that Mrs Spilner (pictured celebrating her 100th birthday) was left lying in urine-soaked sheets and that nurses thought it was funny that her hair was caked in food Even then, the drip didn't work properly. They first tried to administer it through her leg which swelled up like a balloon and later they tried her hand and arm but the drip either stopped working properly or made her arm swell. Mum was prescribed antibiotics but they caused horrific blisters in her mouth which meant it was too painful for her to eat. She wasn't given any soft food or soup, and every day she would complain that she was starving. "I begged the hospital staff to give her some nourishment but was told by a doctor that "although she keeps saying she is hungry, she is quite alright." One afternoon I arrived to find that she had fallen from her chair and had rolled underneath her bed. There were no nurses around and I have no idea how long she had been lying there. Another time I found Mum had lumps of porridge caked in her hair. I asked a nurse why she was in such a state and she just laughed and said Mum had fallen asleep in her breakfast. I was so angry that she found the incident amusing and had made no attempt to clean her up. Nora also says that she was forced to alert nurses after finding her mother had slipped and fallen under her hospital bed and that on a number of occasions she found Mrs Spilner very hungry Almost four weeks after being admitted Leicester Royal Infirmary, Mrs Spilner died on 22nd February 2012. Her cause of death was confirmed as renal failure, combined with poor blood flow to her lower limbs. Mrs Spilner, who was widowed in 1970, left behind a son and daughter, five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. Robert Rose, a medical law expert and partner with Lime Solicitors, representing her family, said: "Nora and her family have understandably been left devastated by what happened to their mother. When we investigated Lydia's care, medical evidence revealed that the hospital had failed to hydrate her appropriately. We discovered that following initial treatment in A&E on 28th January, Lydia received no IV fluids at all until 8th February. When IV treatment was finally given between 8th and 12th February she received fluid in quantities sufficient to maintain but not replace the amount she had already lost. The hospital has admitted that basic care failures led to Mrs Spilner's death. Nora claims that her mother was subjected to a catalogue of failures in basic care In short, our medical evidence showed that the ten days without sufficient fluids caused her to develop renal failure and brought forward her death. He added: "We are currently experiencing an avalanche of complaints about the care of the elderly across the East Midlands. Our legal teams receive at least one complaint a week about the quality of care of the elderly in East Midlands hospitals and care homes. It seems that older people are becoming exposed to greater danger in hospitals and care homes, the places where they should receive expert care, than they would be at home. Mrs Spilner died at the Leicester Royal Infirmary in February 2012 after suffering kidney failure as a result of dehydration. The hospital has accepted that its failures contributed to her death This case is particularly tragic because all Lydia needed was for someone on that ward to pay attention to what she needed. She just needed someone to keep an eye on her and she failed. Sue Mason, divisional head of nursing at University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, said: "It's clear our failure to give Mrs Spilner intravenous fluids was a catastrophic error, for which we have apologised. We know that saying sorry won't bring her back, but we at least want her family to know we will not avoid our responsibility. We are truly sorry. As regards the equally important issue of the compassion shown to Mrs Spilner - since this happened in 2012, we have changed the nurse leadership on this ward, increased staffing levels and introduced hourly ward rounds. Again, we realise these actions will not alter anything for the family, but we hope that it shows we take their experience seriously.