Thelma Walker's son reveals suffering of his mother in Lateline expose on nursing homes More than 100 nursing homes around the country are providing inadequate basic, dignified care for residents. Courtesy: ABC, Lateline Thelma Walker had surgical mesh sticking out of her and her body was turning purple but staff failed to act according to her son. Picture: ABC Lateline Source: Supplied STAFF at a nursing home failed to act despite an elderly woman having surgical mesh sticking out of her stomach and her body turning purple. Thelma Walker's distressed family said when her condition began to deteriorate staff ignored their concerns and didn't bother to even take her temperature. When her son John finally demanded an ambulance his mother's blood pressure was 60 over zero and her body had turned purple. "Her body was shutting down," he said. Looking at her lower limbs they were purple as well and very cold so there was peripheral shutdown happening. Thelma Walker died shortly after. The disturbing claim was made by a distressed Mr Walker during the ABC's Lateline report last night into a staffing crisis in aged care. Mr Walker told Lateline his mother was resident of an accredited nursing home and on the day she died staff had showered and dressed her without reporting her body was purpling and that she had a piece of surgical mesh from a previous operation protruding from her stomach. And nobody had said or done anything about this and they knew ... well I really knew what was happening. The family believes Mrs Walker might still be alive today had staff acted swiftly and appropriately. Despite making a complaint to the federal complaints scheme and calling for the nursing home's management to be held accountable, Mr Walker was advised nothing could be done as the home had promised more staff training. Several aged care workers told Lateline about shocking examples of abuse and neglect of residents and the staffing crisis within the aged care sector. The program said it has received phone calls and emails from carers, nurses, facility managers and even former health bureaucrats cataloguing shocking incidents. More than 100 nursing homes around the country are providing inadequate basic, dignified care for residents, it was claimed.