A young nursing home worker who ‘lost count’ of the number of corpses she has washed has tragically taken her own life after being haunted by her job, her parents claim.
Taylor Watterson’s parents say the trauma of having to wash residents’ corpses as part of her job has severely affected her mental health.
Part of the 22-year-old’s role at the two care homes she worked in was cleaning up the people she cared for after they passed away.
Her heartbroken parents, Andi and Lana McCleave, have opened up about how often playing the roles in care homes in Irvine and Dreghorn, Ayrshire has had an impact on their daughter’s mental health.
Taylor quit her job and isolated herself from friends and family before taking her own life, according to the Daily Record, just before Christmas 2021.
(Image: daily recording)
“His job had a lot to do with his mental health,” his mother told the newspaper.
“One day she asked me if I knew how many corpses she had washed.
“She had lost count.
“I couldn’t believe it when she said it.
“She was just a young girl and had to do it regularly.
“Doing this over and over again and seeing residents she was on the verge of death on a regular basis was hard for her to bear.”
Taylor’s father, Andi, added: “She couldn’t get away from it.
(Image: daily recording)
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“She told me it was or two people a week she was looking after that she was losing,” Andi said.
“The only other line of work that would happen at that age would be a soldier in a war zone.
“What kind of effect has this had on the mental health of caregivers?
“People they had cared for for months and years had left within days of each other.”
Andi said her daughter had “built a rapport” with the residents before they died, and it was “heartbreaking” to hear her daughter reveal such details of her work.
Taylor sought help from her GP and was prescribed medication for her mental health.
These, unfortunately, did not help her recover.
Andi and Lana are now working hard to raise money for the bereaved families and have organized a sponsored climb of Goatfell, Isle of Arran.
(Image: daily recording)
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A GoFundMe page has been created to help raise funds.
A spokesperson for Fullarton Care Home, one of the two homes Taylor worked at, told the Daily Record: ‘Everyone at Fullarton Care Home who knew Ms Watterson when she worked here in 2019 is deeply saddened to learn of his death.
“Our deepest condolences go out to his family and friends.
“We will remember her fondly as one of life’s natural caregivers, someone who easily built strong relationships with the people she cared for and who was determined to bring joy into life. of our residents through his kindness and compassion.”
The Samaritans can be contacted 24 hours a day, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year by calling 116 123, emailing [email protected] or visiting www.samaritans.org.
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