A great grandmother who always had “incredible hope” died after being put on a controversial care plan without her family’s permission.

Lily Hemington, of Westbury Road, Finchley, was put on the Liverpool Care Pathway by doctors days before she was due to be discharged from Barnet General Hospital after a foot infection.

Under the pathway, doctors withdraw treatment, food and water from dying patients but the Government has announced it will be phased out after an independent review commissioned by the Government.

Mrs Hemington, 93, was admitted to the hospital last August, and during her stay she fell over three times and was found lying naked on a number of occasions before she died on October 1.

Her son, Larry Hemington, was left with many unanswered questions and after speaking to the ombudsman, he received a letter from the hospital trust admitting they had made failures.

But after Mr Hemington called a meeting with his mother’s doctors last week, he was dismayed to learn she had been put on the pathway without her family being consulted.

He said: “She was so excited about being discharged, but then just a day later a doctor told me she had days to live. It made no sense.

"My mother had incredible hope. I believe where there is breath, there is hope and if they hadn’t put her on this pathway she would still be alive today.

“I am angry and beyond furious. My mother was so full of life and I feel she has been failed by the hospital.

“My mother has brought us up to be the kind of people to always believe, which is why this care plan is such a slap in the face. It’s not something we would have agreed to at all.”

During the private meeting at the Wellhouse Lane hospital, the doctors said when Mrs Hemington arrived in hospital in September she was in a “confused” state.

But her son argued she was of “sound mind” when she was admitted, reminiscing about the war years with the other patients.

According to her death certificate, Mrs Hemington, who had 56 great grandchildren, died of an infection, pneumonia and Alzheimer’s Disease.

Former newspaper seller Mr Hemington, 70, added: “It’s unfair, she died with such little dignity. This should not have been allowed to happen.

“I want to highlight the case and make sure it doesn’t happen again. I’ll be taking this further.”

Mr Hemington’s friend Spike Hawkins used to visit his mother and after seeing how hungry and weak she was, he took it upon himself to feed her.

He said: “It was very distressing. Just one hour before she died I was with her and it seemed she had not eaten in a while. I gave her some food and she was obviously starving - she was so happy when I fed her.”

The Times Series is awaiting a response from Barnet General Hospital.