Inquiry exposes poor care at Stafford

The concerns of patients at Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust have been widely reported on today in the press, with publication of an inquiry implying that the Trust became more obsessed with targets than patient care.

I commented a while ago on concerns raised by the Patient’s Association on varying standards of care involving the elderly, at differing NHS Trusts, and have also been involved in cases against the Medway NHS Trust in Kent, which was the subject of intense scrutiny following a report criticising the standards of hygiene there. It is saddening to read such reports again. These incidents at Stafford follow a private inquiry in respect of concerns that arose approximately 12 months ago. The government have so far resisted calls for a public inquiry.

Amongst the comments made in the report are instances of receptionists at Accident & Emergency acting as stand-in “triage”, instances of patients being left alone, inadequate supervision, and difficulties obtaining food and drink.

What is striking about these points is that they are basic care needs; in other words, supervising a patient, escorting them if they need to use the toilet and ensuring they are given adequate nutrition. These do not require the use of expensive equipment, or impose a higher standard of skill than what should be expected from a healthcare provider. Indeed, no doubt the vast majority of patients at hospitals up and down the country will be rightly satisfied at the high level of care they receive. From a personal perspective, it is frustrating to see these types of cases. Whilst each case has to be looked at in isolation, these types of incidents seem all the more preventable.