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As her husband of more than 40 years lay dying in a hospital bed, Kate Baxter was not even allowed to hold his hand without wearing protective gloves.
Paul suffered a stroke in December 2025 and, four months before he died in June aged 90, caught scabies in hospital.
In his final days, Kate could only touch him while wearing the rubber gloves after he contracted the highly contagious skin infestation, external at Glangwili Hospital, Carmarthen.
Hywel Dda health board said it was taking extra measures to control the spread of scabies and was focused on keeping hospitals and healthcare settings as clean as possible.
"He was suffering. He said to me, 'my back itches' and when I rubbed his back, his skin was coming off like sand," she said.
"To have him die like that wasn't good."
Scabies is caused by microscopic mites burrowing under the skin and it spreads through close skin contact.
Kate, from Cwrt Newydd in Ceredigion, said Paul also had pneumonia, but the crusted scabies meant his immune system "had weakened".
Paul died on 8 June - scabies is noted as a secondary cause of death on his death certificate.
Kate said the undertaker told her Paul had a tag on him saying "environmental hazard" while his body was in the morgue.
"It means the scabies were still active on him," she added.
"You don't expect your husband to go into hospital with one thing and then come out via the morgue as a health hazard."
