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'Keep mums and babies safe by improving digital medical records'

With the distressing spate of news reports about mums and ­babies who weren’t kept safe in hospital, an initiative in the Midlands to improve patient safety in maternal and acute care settings comes as a relief.

The newly announced Midlands Patient Safety Research Collaboration will bring together NHS trusts, ­universities and private business to evaluate how digital tools can help clinical decision making and reduce danger for patients.

Problems can arise if communication is poor between medics when patients move between departments.

Professor Alice Turner of Birmingham University said: “The power of new technology available to us means that we can address one of the ongoing areas of risk for patients, which is effective communication and clinical decision making.

“The new collaboration will be looking at how digital tools can make a real difference to reduce risks and support patient safety in the areas of acute medicine and maternal health.”

Digital decision-making tools could improve prescribing and personalised management for patients needing emergency care.

Importantly, these tools should provide a smoother flow of information between healthcare professionals in acute care between hospitals, doctors and the West Midlands Ambulance Service, and hopefully reduce risks of patient harm at key points during acute care.

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Source: The Mirror, 18 December 2022

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'It's not just physical': suicidal thoughts common in those living with spinal cord injury

Suicidal thoughts are three times as common in those living with a spinal cord injury in the UK, according to new research

And yet, it’s estimated that only one third of people living with a spinal cord injury (SCI) are getting access to mental health support, and of those, 68% do not feel that support services available are able to meet their needs.

These alarming statistics are taken from a new report, ‘It’s not just physical’ which was presented to parliament yesterday (17 November).  The report shines a light on the mental health problems faced by people with spinal cord injuries in the UK today.

It's calling on the NHS, government and other health policy makers to provide better mental health support services for people with spinal cord injuries – and their unpaid carers – as a matter of urgency.  Nik Hartley, Spinal Injuries Association CEO said:

“We are at risk of failing thousands of people in the UK living with a spinal cord injury. Our new report highlights that psychological damage caused by a SCI is, at best, considered as an afterthought, and at worst, completely ignored by the medical profession. We need urgent action and for services to be sufficiently specialised to support the thousands of people living with this type of injury before it is too late.”

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Source: Spinal Injuries Association, 17 November 2021

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'Injustice' as man left in Nottinghamshire care home for months

A man was left in a care home for five months without regard for "basic human rights", an investigation has found.

The Nottinghamshire man, who had dementia, was placed in the home for two weeks as respite for his family. But the county council failed to properly assess whether he could return home, leaving his family with a £15,000 care bill, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman said.

The authority has apologised and said it would make improvements.

The ombudsman launched an inquiry after complaints from the man's family.

He was placed in the care home by his wife while she struggled to look after her son, who had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. The investigation found that after the first two weeks, the man's wife said she still could not cope with his return.

But instead of carrying out a review or assessment to judge what support was needed for him to potentially go home, the council allowed the case to "drift".

The ombudsman, Michael King, said: "The man had a right to respect for his family life, and to enjoy his existing home peacefully."

"But the council did not have any regard for the man's human rights during those five months he was away from his family."

In its report, the watchdog said it found "fault causing injustice".

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Source: BBC News, 4 March 2021

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'Ignored' women in 'excruciating' pain, says Hull MP Emma Hardy as she slams 'unacceptable' care

Emma Hardy MP has secured a Westminster debate on gynaecological wait times.

Gynaecology waiting lists across the UK have now reached a combined figure of more than 610,000 – a 69% increase on pre-pandemic levels. New analysis by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) shows that in England, gynaecology waiting lists have grown the most by percentage increase of all elective specialties.

Emma is co-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs) for Surgical Mesh and Endometriosis - both come under the heading of ‘gynaecological conditions’ and both are being impacted by increased waiting times.

Through her involvement with these APPGs, Emma has heard the testimony of so many women whose lives have been impacted by conditions that can be so painful and debilitating that they impact on every aspect of family, social and work life. Emma will ask the minister to launch an investigation into possible gender bias in the prioritisation of gynaecology services and ensure that elective recovery will address the unequal growth of gynaecology waiting lists compared to other specialties.

Emma said: "It is completely unacceptable that 610,000 women are waiting for gynaecological care across the UK. The reality is that many of these women will be in excruciating pain awaiting treatment, unable to go about their day-to-day lives."

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Source: Hull Daily Mail, 5 July 2022

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'I'm well enough to leave hospital - but I can't'

"It would be much better if I was out there than in here," said Roger.

The 69-year-old looked wistfully across Newport from the window next to his bed at the Royal Gwent Hospital in Wales.

He has been here for three weeks after being admitted with an infection and although he is now well enough to leave, and desperate to do so, he can't.

Roger has cerebral palsy and the impact of his recent illness means he needs extra care to be arranged before he can safely go home.

Roger is not alone.

"At least a quarter of patients in our care of the elderly beds are in a similar position," explained Helen Price, a senior nurse at the hospital.

"It is very much a waiting game for that care to be available," she said.

Hospitals in Wales are fuller than ever, according to the latest statistics. In the final week of January more than 95% of all acute beds in the Welsh NHS were occupied, which is the highest figure ever recorded.

Paul Underwood, who manages urgent care in Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, said there are well over 350 patients medically fit enough to leave hospital.

"Roughly a third of patients do not need to be accommodated on those sites and that's extremely difficult," he said.

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Source: BBC News, 16 February 2023

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'I'm traumatised now': Covid bereaved call for inquiry into NHS 111

Hundreds of people believe the helpline failed their relatives. Now they are demanding their voices be heard. 

Families whose relatives died from COVID-19 in the early period of the pandemic are calling for an inquiry into the NHS 111 service, arguing that many critically ill people were given inadequate advice and told to stay at home.

The COVID-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group says approximately a fifth of its 1,800 members – more than 350 people – believe the 111 service failed to recognise how seriously ill their relatives were and direct them to appropriate care.

“We believe that in some cases it is likely these issues directly contributed to loved ones dying, due to causing a delay in receiving treatment, or a total lack of treatment leading to them passing away at home,” said the group’s co-founder Jo Goodman, whose father, Stuart Goodman, died on 2 April aged 72.

Many families have said they had trouble even getting through to the 111 phone line, the designated first step, alongside 111 online, for people concerned they may have COVID-19.

The service recorded a huge rise in calls to almost 3m in March, and official NHS figures show that 38.7% were abandoned after callers waited longer than 30 seconds for a response. Some families who did get through have said the call handlers worked through fixed scripts and asked for yes or no answers, which led to their relatives being told they were not in need of medical care.

“Despite having very severe symptoms including skin discolouration, fainting, total lack of energy, inability to eat and breathlessness, as well as other family members explaining the level of distress they were in, this was not considered sufficient to be admitted to hospital or have an ambulance sent out,” Goodman said.

Some families also say their relatives’ health risk factors, such as having diabetes, were not taken into account, and that not all the 111 questions were appropriate for black, Asian and minority ethnic people, including a question to check for breathlessness that asked if their lips had turned blue.

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Source: The Guardian, 21 September 2020

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'I'll keep fighting for dad over botched dentistry'

The daughter of a man who took his own life after experiencing years of pain linked to botched dental surgery said she had "lost faith in the system".

Clive Worthington, from Harlow, Essex, travelled to Hungary for dental implants in 2008.

Several follow-up procedures from the same dentist back in the UK over the next seven years were unsuccessful.

The government said it was addressing a so-called loophole which meant the 81-year-old missed out on compensation.

Last week, an inquest concluded Mr Worthington's death in 2022 was a suicide.

Senior Essex coroner Lincoln Brookes said the "long-term consequences" of Mr Worthington's unsuccessful dental surgery "impacted significantly on his mental health and ability to cope with daily life".

In 2017, the General Dental Council (GDC) found Dr Eszter Gömbös, who was employed by Perfect Profiles, at fault for the work.

Mr Worthington was awarded £117,378 in damages and legal costs at Chelmsford County Court in November 2019 - one of the highest pay-outs for dental negligence in the UK.

But the insurer which covered Dr Gömbös - the Dental Defence Union (DDU) - argued "discretionary indemnity" and refused to pay.

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Source: BBC News, 12 October 2023

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We want to hear from patients with experience of NHS and/or private orthodontists and dentists in any healthcare setting, including community practices and hospitals.

  • Did the orthodontist/dentist give you the treatment and support you needed?
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  • Have you tried to make a complaint?

Share your experience of orthodontist and dentistry services

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'I wouldn't bring a member of my family to this hospital,' says medic

Steve Barclay is back as England's health secretary, just as the NHS prepares for what its chief executive Amanda Pritchard says could be a "very, very challenging winter".

The government has said "intensive work" is under way in the 15 most under-pressure hospital trusts in England, to speed up ambulance delays, free up beds and reduce waiting times in A&E.

Emergency departments across the UK are struggling to quickly treat patients.

Only 57% of people who turned up at major A&E departments in England last month were seen, admitted or discharged within four hours, well below the 95% national target.

The latest figures from Gloucestershire Royal show it performs slightly worse than average, with 55% dealt with in four hours.

One medic, speaking anonymously to the BBC, said: "I wouldn't bring a member of my family to this hospital. And winter is going to be worse unless something changes fast."

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Source: BBC News, 28 October 2022

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'I will never be the same': RaDonda Vaught speaks out after sentencing

RaDonda Vaught has spoken out about her criminal case for the first time last week in an exclusive interview with ABC News.

Ms. Vaught, 38, was sentenced to three years of supervised probation on 13 May. She was convicted of criminally negligent homicide and abuse of an impaired adult for a fatal medication error she made in December 2017 after overriding an electronic medical cabinet as a nurse at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn. The error, in which vecuronium, a powerful paralyser, was administered instead of the sedative Versed, led to the death of 75-year-old Charlene Murphey. 

"I will never be the same person," Ms. Vaught told ABC News, "It's really hard to be happy about something without immediately feeling guilty. She could still be alive, with her family. Even with all the system errors, the nurse is the last to check."

Ms. Vaught immediately took responsibility for the medication error after it occurred but contends that her actions alone did not cause the error. Her case has spurred an outcry from nurses across the country, many of whom have expressed concerns about the likelihood of similar mistakes under increasingly difficult working conditions. 

"So many things had to line up incorrectly for this error to have happened, and my actions were not alone in that," Ms. Vaught said. 

When Ms. Pilgrim asked her if she felt like a scapegoat, Ms. Vaught said, "I think the whole world feels like I was a scapegoat."

"There's a fine line between blame and responsibility, and in healthcare, we don't blame," she said. "I'm responsible for what I failed to do. Vanderbilt is responsible for what they failed to do."

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Source: Becker's Hospital Review, 23 May 2022

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'I was repeatedly ignored' - report finds maternity racism

Black and Asian women are being harmed by racial discrimination in maternity care, according to an inquiry.

The year-long investigation into "racial injustice" was conducted by the charity Birthrights.

Women reported feeling unsafe, being denied pain relief, facing racial stereotyping about their pain tolerance, and microaggressions.

The government has set up a taskforce to tackle racial disparities in maternity care.

Hiral Varsani says she was traumatised by her treatment during the birth of her first child.

The 31-year-old from north London developed sepsis - a potentially life-threatening reaction to an infection - after her labour was induced, which she says was only spotted after a long delay.

"I was shivering, my whole body was aching, my heart was beating really fast and I felt terrible. But everyone kept saying everything was normal," she says. "It was almost 24 hours later before a doctor took my bloods for the first time and realised I was seriously ill."

She believes her race played a role in her care: "I experienced microaggressions and was stereotyped because of the colour of my skin.

"I was repeatedly ignored, they just thought I was a weak little Indian girl, who was unable to take pain."

While death in pregnancy or childbirth is very rare in the UK, there are stark racial disparities in maternal mortality rates. Black women are more than four times more likely to die in pregnancy or childbirth than white women in the UK, while women from Asian backgrounds face almost twice the risk.

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Source: BBC News, 23 May 2022

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'I was left lying in my own urine'

A 73-year-old patient has said he was neglected at an NHS hospital and left to cry for help in "excruciating pain" during an ordeal that lasted months.

Martin Wild was admitted to Salford Royal last year due to a spinal infection and claims he was denied pain relief and left lying in his own urine.

Consultant Glyn Smurthwaite said Martin was "the most neglected acute patient I have ever seen".

The trust that runs the hospital has apologised for failings in his care.

Mr Wild came home from Salford Royal Hospital in January after an eight-month stay because of an infection following a private spinal operation.

He said he was forced to phone 999 from his hospital bed when first admitted to the acute medical ward in May 2023 after struggling to get staff to give him pain relief and his Parkinson's medication.

"I was left on my own in excruciating pain, with little pain relief, and I was laying on this bed for over a week before I saw a consultant."

Mr Wild was discharged despite warning staff he was not well enough and no one could look after him at home, and ended up being readmitted days later via A&E.

He said his poor care continued during his second stay, and Mr Wild recalled that he was shaking so much in pain that he knocked bottles of urine on to his bed after they had been left on the table with his food.

Mr Wild was left lying in the urine-soaked sheets for hours before they were changed.

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Source: BBC News, 3 March 2023

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'I had to be sectioned': the NHS staff broken and burned out by Covid

In April, when the coronavirus outbreak was at its peak in the UK and tearing through hospitals, junior doctor Rebecca Thornton’s mental health took a turn for the worse and she ended up having to be sectioned.

Even now, three months later, she cannot face going back to her job and thinks it will take her a year to recover from some of the horrors she saw while working on a Covid ward in a deprived area of London.

“It was horrendous,” Thornton recalls. “It’s so harrowing to watch people die, day in, day out. Every time someone passed away, I’d say, ‘This is my fault’. Eventually I stopped eating and sleeping.”

Thornton’s case may sound extreme but her experiences of working through Covid are far from unique. More than 1,000 doctors plan to quit the NHS over the government’s handling of the pandemic, according to a recent survey, with some citing burnout as a cause.

A psychologist offering services to NHS staff throughout the UK, who asked to remain anonymous, has witnessed the toll on staff. “I’ve seen signs of PTSD in some healthcare workers,” she says. “Staff really stood up to the plate and worked incredibly hard. It was a crisis situation that moved very quickly ... After it subsided a little bit, the tiredness became very clear.”

Roisin Fitzsimons, who is head of the Nightingale Academy, which provides a platform to share best practice in nursing and midwifery, and consultant nurse at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS foundation trust, also worries about the looming threat of an uncertain future. “Are our staff prepared? Do they have the resilience to go through this again? That’s the worry and that’s the unknown. Burnout is hitting people now. People are processing and realising what they’ve gone through.”

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Source: The Guardian, 8 September 2020

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'I fear being a forgotten casualty of pandemic'

At the age of 49, Sarah Fisher feels her life is on a knife-edge. She had a heart attack during lockdown and has subsequently been diagnosed with heart failure.

In July, she was told she needed to have an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) fitted, which can shock the heart back into rhythm when it detects a potential cardiac arrest. But 12 weeks on, she is still waiting. "I could have a cardiac arrest at any point," Sarah says.

"It is awful not knowing what is going to happen. "I am on the urgent list – but the infection rates are rising and the clinics are closing."

"I don't know when I will get it.

"There are so many people in my position – we don't have Covid but our lives are at risk too. We are the forgotten victims of this pandemic."

British Heart Foundation analysis of Office for National Statistics data for England and Wales found almost 800 extra deaths from heart disease among under-65s from March to July - 15% more than would be expected.

The rate of death was highest during the full lockdown - but, worryingly, the trend continued afterwards. The charity blames delays in people seeking care, as well as reduced access to routine tests and treatments.

And NHS England figures show a sharp rise in the numbers waiting over six weeks for a whole range of key tests, including echocardiograms for hearts.

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Source: BBC News, 15 October 2020

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'I don't want to be bullied': NHS and care workers on mandatory Covid jabs

NHS workers have raised concerns about the prospect of all health and social care staff in England being compelled by law to take the Covid vaccine.

The Downing Street review which is considering making it mandatory for NHS workers to have the jab, as a way of protecting patients, has led to questions about its moral and legal implications.

A consultant in a busy north-west hospital said they would feel “incredibly uncomfortable” with the idea of forcing NHS staff to have the vaccine. They said they would prefer a concerted high-profile campaign to encourage staff to have the vaccine, with a last-resort option of asking unvaccinated staff to take on different roles, away from the frontline.

“I would feel very uncomfortable with us forcing anyone to have it – you can’t force an injection into someone,” the consultant said.

Last week Care UK said it only wanted to hire new staff who had had the vaccine, while another care provider, Barchester, said it wanted all of its staff, including current workers, to have had the jab by 23 April, adding that if they did not they would not be considered for shifts.

The matron of a care home in Merseyside said there had been a lot of pressure put on her to have the vaccine, which was making her anxious.

“I don’t want to be bullied into a decision when I have legitimate concerns. I feel being told I am selfish and putting others at risk is insulting," she said.

However, a CBT therapist in her 30s, who also works in the north-west of England believed all NHS staff should be vaccinated, regardless of their role. She said her hospital trust’s values emphasised “care, compassion and commitment” and individuals who refused the vaccine could potentially harm others.

“If we’re going to be caring for people, it comes under that value and it’s a core part of what the NHS is about. So if someone is saying they don’t want the vaccine, it puts into question whether you are going against the values of the trust.”

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Source: The Guardian, 3 March 2021

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'I couldn't hold my baby': how Covid hit the families of very ill children

Parents and professionals have been devastated by the impact of the pandemic on some of the UK’s most vulnerable patients

Kelly Stoor gave birth to her daughter, Kaia, 14 weeks early. On 12 March, the midwife held her up for Kelly to see before whisking Kaia off to the neonatal unit for critical care. Kaia became seriously ill and was transferred to a hospital in Southampton, 50 miles away from home, for specialist treatment just before lockdown was imposed on 23 March. While there, she teetered on the edge of life and death for weeks and underwent life-saving surgery twice.

The impact on Kelly, her husband, Max, and their other three children has been enormous. Hospital restrictions in April dictated that only one parent was allowed to visit. Both parents were not able not hold their daughter for the first time until 88 days after she was born.

“It was extremely difficult,” says Kelly. “I wasn’t allowed to hold her because of Covid. I had to wear gloves if I was going to touch her. We didn’t know if she was going to make it, and Max and I weren’t allowed in together to be with her. There was one time I was with her for three hours and I couldn’t cope any more. I wanted to break.”

Kelly is not alone. In the UK, at least 25,000 children are living with conditions that require palliative care support and their lives, along with those of their families, have been upended by the coronavirus pandemic and accompanying restrictions.

A report by Rainbow Trust found that lockdown was a distressing experience for many; 80% of those surveyed by the charity in April said their situation was worse or much worse than before lockdown. Nearly 60% of parents, meanwhile, say that their mental health is worse than before the pandemic.

Families have had to take on the strain of caring full-time for a child with a life-limiting illness, such as cancer or neurological conditions, with little to no support. There has been no respite, explains Dr Jon Rabbs, a consultant paediatrician and trustee for Rainbow Trust. When lockdown was announced, many community healthcare services had to stop face to face contact and special schools which supported children were also closed. “One of my families is at breaking point, they are so exhausted and worried,” he says.

In child healthcare there have been delays, he says. Urgent treatment is always available but follow-up care has been cancelled or delayed in some places. “In my practice we have not missed any significant relapses,” he adds. “But imagine the worry not knowing whether things were going to be OK or not.”

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Source: The Guardian, 22 October 2020

 

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'I am very angry at the way I have been treated due to COVID-19': Horrendous toll on non-virus patients is emerging

As the death toll from the virus soars above 40,000, slowly the horrendous toll on non-Covid patients is emerging.

These are patients who are not afflicted by coronavirus, but who have had their treatment or diagnosis for other potentially deadly conditions postponed or cancelled, as hospitals scrambled to make way for an overwhelming burden of COVID-19 patients.

Sherwin Hall, a 27-year-old from Leeds, had tried 13 times in one month during the lockdown to get a proper diagnosis for the crippling pain in his groin. He was initially told it might be a sexually transmitted disease. Eventually he was given the all clear of any STD after multiple blood tests and begged for an MRI scan. But he claims he was told no scans would be available because of the COVID-19 emergency.

Finally he got a scan which confirmed a 14 cm tumour near his pelvis. He clams his consultant confirmed the delay in diagnosis and therefore cancer treatment may have serious consequences on his chances of survival.

He told ITV news "I am very angry at the way I have been treated due to COVID-19 and the delay on my cancer treatment and now I am fighting for my life."

His lawyer, Mary Smith, who specialises in medical negligence at Novum Law in Bristol, says she is worried there will be a spike in cases involving delayed diagnosis or treatment coming across her desk.

She wants an urgent overhaul of the management of this crisis, now its peak appears to have passed. 

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Source: ITV News, 9 June 2020

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'Horrendous' ambulance delays at West Midlands hospitals

An ambulance crew had to wait seven hours to hand over a patient in the West Midlands, it has been revealed.

The case on 11 December was highlighted in the West Midlands Ambulance Service's in-house magazine, which said average waits had "ballooned".

It said average waits at one hospital were running at nearly three hours in early December.

The ambulance service said it hoped to put another 40 crews on the road by January.

Delays in hospitals taking over care of patients is considered "risky", NHS England said, because it not only delayed patients receiving specialist assessment and treatment, but also reduced the number of ambulances available to respond to emergencies.

The West Midlands trust's weekly briefing magazine, published on 17 December, said only the East of England trust had experienced a similar level of "horrendous" delays. It added that another four hospitals in the West Midlands had average delays of about two hours.

The "knock-on" effect it said was some high-risk patients were waiting longer for an ambulance than they should.

Meanwhile, some staff had to work late beyond their shifts and missed meal breaks.

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Source: BBC News, 23 December 2020

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'High risk' list misses off thousands of people

Thousands of people have been missed off the government's high risk list for Covid-19 despite meeting the criteria.

Among them have been transplant patients, people with asthma and some with rare lung diseases.

Many are worried it will affect their ability to access food and medical supplies as they shield from the virus, unable to leave their homes for at least 12 weeks.

"It's like she's been forgotten," said Bev Pearson, mother of 20-year-old heart transplant patient Lucy Pearson.

Miss Pearson, from Whitsbury in Fordingbridge, Hampshire, had her transplant 14 years ago and still visits hospital for regular check-ups. She has been shielding in the home she shares with her mother, brother and sister - none of whom have been venturing out in an attempt to protect her.

Despite registering her daughter on the government list herself, she said she had received no confirmation.

When she asked her GP she was told it had "nothing to do with the surgery", she added.

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Source: BBC News, 7 April 2020

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'Hidden' rise in blood clot deaths 'breaking families' warns charity

Thrombosis UK has warned that deaths involving blood clots are higher than expected as it called for more transparency over the work hospitals are doing to reduce the risk for patients.

Before the pandemic hit, hospitals were regularly publishing data on the number of patients who had been risk assessed for blood clots. In March 2020, the NHS in England took the decision to suspend the data collection on venous thromboembolism (also known as VTE) risk assessments to “release capacity in providers and commissioners to manage the Covid-19 pandemic”.

But the data collection and publication is yet to resume. The charity said the data shows how many VTE cases are missed in hospitals.

One bereaved man described how his mother died last year after the condition was missed. Tim Edwards, 42, said healthcare workers missed signs of the condition while Jennifer Edwards, 74, was in hospital on the south coast.

Despite having many symptoms of a pulmonary embolism she was discharged home and died three days later. Mr Edwards said: ““My mother’s symptoms were missed from her admission to hospital right up to her time in the cardiology department.

“She was discharged and passed away three days after phoning the NHS with shortness of breath. She should not have died. I took it upon myself to enquire about the circumstances surrounding her death and was overwhelmed by the lack of care taken.

“Sadly, I know this is not an isolated case.”

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Source: Wales Online, 12 May 2023

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'He was there four hours begging for help'

An 86-year-old man died after lying in the road waiting more than four hours for an ambulance, his family have said.

George Ian Stevenson was hit by a car near his home in Johnstown, Wrexham county, last Wednesday. His family said the first 999 call was made at 19:31 GMT, and the ambulance did not arrive until 23:37 GMT.

The Welsh Ambulance Service is looking into the incident, but said that at the time of the call, all its vehicles were already committed to other patients.

Two off-duty paramedics stopped to help, but were reluctant to move him in case they caused further injury.

Mr Stevenson's granddaughter, Ellie Williams said on the night of the accident it was raining, freezing and foggy.

She said: "Left there for four hours, begging for help, waiting for help. And that makes us so sad.

"A hard-working man who has paid his taxes all his life and paid into the system has been let down when he's needed them the most, and I just can't quite comprehend what has happened to him."

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Source: BBC News, 8 March 2022

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'Gross failure in care' of baby starved of oxygen

There was a "gross failure in basic care" which led to a baby being starved of oxygen during birth, a coroner said.

Zak Ezra Carter died at the Royal Gwent Hospital, Newport, two days after being born in July 2018 at Ystrad Fawr Hospital in Caerphilly county.

Gwent coroner Caroline Saunders said the monitoring of Zak and his mother Adele Thomas fell "well below the standards expected". She said she was reassured the health board had taken steps to improve care.

Ms Thomas told the Newport hearing she felt "scared" and staff "didn't care" when she arrived to give birth on 20 July 2018. In a statement to the inquest she described being turned away from the centre after going into labour on three occasions, before being admitted on the fourth.

Ms Thomas said she was initially offered paracetamol as pain relief at the midwife-led centre.

She described "a lot of arguing between nurses", one of whom was "bolshie and rude and rough handled me", adding the midwives "did not appear to be in any rush". 

When Zak was born, he was described as being "white and pale" and without a heartbeat. He did not cry and was taken away to a room for resuscitation. Zak was transferred to the Royal Gwent Hospital where he died two days later.

During the first stage of labour, Prof Sanders said "everything was progressing at a normal healthy rate and the fetal heart rate was recorded as completely normal". But she said it was "highly unusual" for the heart rate to not be documented contemporaneously, and the midwives had not been able to explain why they had not done so.

Recording a narrative conclusion, Ms Saunders said the monitoring of Ms Thomas and her baby had "fallen well below the standards expected", leading to a "gross failure in basic care" of them in the later stages of labour.

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Source: BBC News, 18 March 2021

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'Great day for safety': Patients harmed by drugs and devices back commissioner role

An Independent Patients' Commissioner is set to be appointed to act as champion for people who have been harmed by medicines or medical devices.   

Baroness Cumberlege, who recommended the new role in a landmark report earlier this year, announced that the government had budged on the issue after initial resistance.

She welcomed the move saying: "Had there been a patient safety commissioner before now, much of the suffering we have witnessed could have been avoided."

But she added "the risk still remains" and further urgent action is needed to protect patients from potentially harmful drugs."

At an online meeting of parliamentarians, the baroness described the testimony of a victim of the medical device vaginal mesh, which has left some patients in chronic pain.

The woman had told her review team: "This device took everything from me. My health, my life, my job, my dignity, my marriage, my freedom."

Reflecting on this the baroness added: "The scale of suffering we witnessed means nothing short of profound change is necessary. Not necessary in a couple or three years, but necessary now."

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Source: Sky News, 16 December 2020

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'Generation X' adults from poorer families more likely to have multiple long-term conditions

More than one in three middle-aged British adults are suffering from at least two chronic health conditions, including recurrent back problems, poor mental health, high blood pressure, diabetes and high-risk drinking, according to research that warned that health in midlife is on the decline.

The study of “generation X” adults born in 1970 found that those who grew up in poorer families were 43% more likely to have multiple long-term health conditions than their peers from wealthier households. Those who had been overweight or obese as children, who had lower birthweight and who had experienced mental ill-health as teenagers were also at increased risk of poor health in midlife.

Dawid Gondek, the UCL researcher who authored the paper, said: “This study provides concerning new evidence about the state of the nation’s health in midlife. It shows that a substantial proportion of the population are already suffering from multiple long-term physical and mental health problems in their late 40s, and also points to stark health inequalities, which appear to begin early in childhood.”

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Source: The Guardian, 28 July 2021

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'Frail' people like me should not be denied lifesaving Covid care

A frailty index is rationing treatment for older and disabled people who catch coronavirus, says Patience Owen. Patience has has a debilitating connective tissue disorder and, like thousands of others with rare conditions, is already in a minority within a minority, marginalised by our NHS, battling increasing disability day by day.

Back in March, without consultation and days before the first lockdown, the Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS), a worldwide tool used to swiftly identify frailty in older patients to improve acute care, was adapted by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). It asked NHS staff in England to score the frailty of Covid patients. Rather than aiming to improve care, it seems the CFS – a fitness-to-frailty sheet using scores from one to nine – was used to work out which patients should be denied acute care. Nice’s new guidelines advised NHS trusts to “sensitively discuss a possible ‘do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation’ decision with all adults with capacity and an assessment suggestive of increased frailty”.

"Checking the scale, I found I would score five, the 'mildly frail' category, and therefore should I get Covid I could be steered towards end-of-life care. Bluntly, if I catch the virus, the NHS may help me to die, not live," says Patience.

By early April, there was a proliferation of illegal “do not resuscitate” (DNR) notices in care homes for people with learning disabilities, and for older people in care homes and in hospitals. Many acutely ill patients stayed at home with Covid symptoms in the belief that they risked being denied care in hospital. Following warnings by the healthcare regulator, the Care Quality Commission, and other medical bodies, that the blanket application of the notices must stop, and legal challenges by charities, exclusions were made to the NICE guidelines.

These included “younger people, people with stable long-term disabilities, learning disabilities or autism”. Yet the guidelines remain in place, in spite of the fact that they appear to contravene the Human Rights Act (including the right to life, article 2, and the right to non-discrimination, article 14). 

A spokeswoman for NICE says it is “very aware of the concerns of some patient groups about access to critical care, and we understand how difficult this feels. Our COVID-19 rapid guideline on critical care was developed to support critical care teams in their management of patients during a very difficult period of intense pressure."

“'Difficult' is a hollow word for the feeling of being selected to die," says Patience. "It’s difficult not to conclude that those with long-term conditions and disabilities, like myself, have become viewed as a sacrificial herd."

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Source: The Guardian, 29 September 2020

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'Exhausted and broken' midwives at West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds speak out about 'substandard care' in whistleblowing letter

Midwives at Suffolk Hospital have spoken out in a whistleblowing letter describing problems in their department as ‘demoralising and heartbreaking’.

In the letter, written by midwives who declined to give their names "for fear of retribution", describe constant staff shortages, a culture of blame and fear, a high pressure environment and substandard care, saying " We entered midwifery to be able to give women centred, holistic care. Instead it feels like we are being overwhelmed by the unmanageable and relentless workload, and as a result are giving substandard care which is demoralising and heartbreaking. We are all feeling like we are now desperate for change. This change is beyond what we can achieve ourselves so we urge you to please help us to generate it. It should not be accepted or tolerated for us to be forced into giving unsafe care entirely due to unsafe staffing". 

In response, Karen Newbury, head of midwifery at the trust, said: “We are working exceptionally hard to recruit additional midwives and we are very grateful for the flexibility and dedication of our staff in ensuring that we provide a safe and caring service – this was recognised by our Care Quality Commission inspection in April which found we managed safety well. We have recently completed recruitment so there will be at least two senior midwives on every shift to provide flexible and experienced support to our maternity teams, and we are working with colleagues regionally to recruit staff both locally and internationally as well as running a full student training programme.”

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Source: Suffolk News, 20 August 2021

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