Eileen Furbank said her mother was neglected

The House of Commons health committee says the problems faced by the elderly need a much higher profile.

One person unhappy about the level of care her mother received is Eileen Furbank.

Her elderly mother was admitted to a care home in her early nineties. She was diabetic and suffering from mild dementia, but otherwise seemed in reasonably good health.

My mother was crying out in agony and they did not do a thing about it. Eileen Furbank

However, after a couple of months Ms Furbank became concerned about the quality of care her mother was receiving.

She then received terrible news: her mother had developed gangrenous bed sores, and was seriously ill.

"I was told by a care worker: 'We have found a hole in your mother's back and it has gone black.'

"I came home that night and went over it in my mind, and thought: 'This is not right'.

"I had her sent into the hospital the next day, and within two hours they phoned me to ask about resuscitation.

"I asked the doctor, 'Is she that poorly?' He said: "She is extremely poorly'.

Ms Furbank's mother died soon after admission. Her daughter is still struggling to come to terms with what happened - and is still angry at the treatment her mother received.

"I should have seen it coming, but I didn't. If I had known the truth I could have done something about it, I could have got her into hospital earlier.

"My mother was crying out in agony and they did not do a thing about it.

"If these were animals there would be protests in the street, but because they are elderly people they don't count for anything anymore."