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Showing results for tags 'Northern Ireland'.
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News Article
Northern Ireland Health: Waiting list patient communication 'in disarray'
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The system for communicating with patients on healthcare waiting lists in Northern Ireland is in disarray, the Public Services Ombudsman has found. Its year-long investigation found that significant and repeated failures in updating patients amounted to "systematic maladministration". The ombudsman urged the Department of Health (DoH) to work with trusts, GPs and others to address the failings. DoH said it appreciated the distress and frustration of patients on lists. The investigation found that failures by trusts across Northern Ireland to follow guidance meant that patients were given little or no information once a referral had been made. Commenting on the findings, Ombudsman Margaret Kelly said the investigation found a waiting list system "which is in disarray and sometimes even chaos". "There is a lack of coherence between the different parts of the system, a lack of clear communication, and a lack of an overall agreed plan for improvement." Read full story Source: BBC News,15 June 2023 -
News Article
'Appalling' gynaecology waiting times in NI under rapid review
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Waiting times for gynaecology services in Northern Ireland are so bad that an independent and rapid review is taking place, BBC News NI has learned. It is being conducted by the Getting it Right First Time (GIRFT) programme which helps improve the quality of care within the NHS. A GIRFT team spent a week this month visiting all five health and social care trusts. In October 2022, 36,900 women in NI were on a gynaecology waiting list. A report from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said that figure was a 42% increase since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and that Northern Ireland had the longest gynaecological waiting lists in the UK. While waiting lists show that some women are waiting about 110 weeks to see a consultant gynaecologist for the first time, consultants have told BBC News NI that the reality is women depending on their medical issue are waiting much longer. Read full story Source: 31 May 2023 -
News Article
NI patients suing GPs over hospital waiting time targets
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Northern Ireland GPs are being hit with bills of thousands of pounds as they are sued by patients coming to harm on hospital waiting lists. Family doctors are being taken to court by their patients as a result of spiralling hospital waiting lists — even though GPs are not responsible for the crisis. It comes as official figures show 14% of the population — around one in seven — had been waiting longer than a year for an outpatient or inpatient appointment at the end of March. The growing risk to patient safety, as the health service struggles to cope with demand, and the potential for primary care doctors to be held accountable have been blamed as reasons for the rising number of GPs who are handing back their contracts. Sixteen GP surgeries in Northern Ireland have handed back contracts in recent months, bringing the key NHS service closer to collapse. Read full story Source: Belfast Telegraph, 30 May 2023 -
News ArticleThe Royal College of Midwives says the need for a maternity strategy in Northern Ireland has gone beyond urgent and is now critical. The warning comes as the RCM is publishing a report on Northern Ireland's maternity services at Stormont on Tuesday. The report will highlight growing challenges as more women across the country with additional health needs are being cared for by maternity services. The RCM report will outline three steps to deliver high quality and safe services for women and families. Develop, publish and fund the implementation of a new maternity and neonatal strategy for Northern Ireland. Sustain the number of places for new student midwives at their recent, higher level. Focus on retaining the midwives in the HSC. Read full story Source: ITV News, 30 May 2023
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News Article
Northern Ireland: No shows to health appointments costing thousands
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Patients who fail to turn up for surgical day case procedures are costing the health service thousands of pounds. It is a problem across Northern Ireland's five health trusts. Over a 10-month period in the South Eastern area 14,000 patients did not attend or cancelled review appointments on the day they were due to turn up. Assistant Director of Elective Surgery at the South Eastern Trust Christine Allam said it was "frustrating". The South Eastern trust review showed between April 2022 and January 2023, 7,755 people did not attend or cancelled new outpatient appointments on the day. During the same period, 14,003 or 10% of patients didn't show for review appointments. Ms Allam said the situation was "frustrating for those patients who are waiting to be seen". "Those slots where people don't turn up are lost capacity because we haven't been given notice - and this only lengthens the waiting lists," she added. It is a problem that all health trusts are experiencing. Read full story Source: BBC News, 24 May 2023 -
News Article
Menopause: Post-hysterectomy care in NI must improve, says patient
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A woman who had a hysterectomy has said she was discharged without sufficient information on its impact on her physical and mental health. Mechelle Davis, from County Down, said it was crucial women left hospital with appropriate medication and advice. Her operation involved removal of her womb, ovaries, fallopian tubes, and cervix. Ms Davis was 48 when she had her operation and said she had no option but to look online for advice, something she described as "unsatisfactory". "I had the operation in October 2022 and didn't go on HRT until the following February," she told BBC News NI. "Every woman who is going through the menopause - including surgically induced - needs support. In its online tool for clinicians, British Menopause Society advise that HRT plays a significant role in managing surgical menopause, especially in women under 45 - provided there are no contradictions such as personal history of hormone dependant cancer. It also adds that "all women undergoing surgical menopause should have counselling and be provided with information about the hormonal consequences of surgery and the role of HRT, both before surgery and before leaving hospital with clear communication to the primary care team." BBC News NI has spoken to other women who, after having a hysterectomy, were discharged without advice or a HRT prescription. Read full story Source: BBC News, 23 May 2023 Further reading on the hub: World Menopause Day 2022: Raising awareness of surgical menopause -
News Article
Northern Ireland medical negligence costs double in a year
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The amount of government money spent on medical negligence cases and legal fees in Northern Ireland doubled within a year. Just over £20m was paid out during 2020-21 but that increased to more than £40m in the 2021-22 financial year. Last year, £30.7m was paid out in damages, while £5.9m went on plaintiff costs and £3.7m in defence costs. The increase in cost is being attributed to the coronavirus pandemic. Last year, 3,987 clinical negligence cases were open. Almost half (1,813) of all cases open in 2021-22 related to four specialties: Obstetrics - 564 Accident and emergency - 456 Neurology - 407 General surgery - 386 There has been a stark increase in the number of cases relating to neurology in the past five years from 23 in 2017-18 to 407 in 2021-22. Read full story Source: BBC News, 24 April 2023 -
News Article
Northern Ireland new model of care for pregnant women launching
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Anew model of care which the Public Health Agency (PHA) say will 'improve maternity services for women and babies in Northern Ireland' is being launched. The new model, which will see women receive support from the same midwifery team during pregnancy, birth and in the early days after birth, is being rolled out across all Health and Social Care (HSC) Trusts in the coming months. ‘Continuity of Midwifery Carer’ (CoMC) is a new model of care for women throughout their childbirth journey "that will provide positive clinical outcomes and higher care satisfaction", the PHA said. Chief Nursing Officer for Northern Ireland, Maria McIlgorm said: “This is a very positive development for maternity services in Northern Ireland. There is a clear evidence base behind the Continuity of Midwifery Carer model which shows that when a woman knows their midwife it can make a significant difference to their experience and outcome. “This woman and family-centred model of care will mean that women across Northern Ireland using our maternity services will receive support from the same dedicated midwifery team throughout their pregnancy, birth and postnatal period.” Read full story Source: Belfast Live, 12 April 2023 -
News Article
'Dire' situation for adults waiting for ADHD diagnosis in NI
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Adults in Northern Ireland seeking assessment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are being forced to go private because of a dire lack of referral services in some areas, a charity has said. Some health trusts have not been able to accept new referrals for adult assessment and diagnosis. ADHD charities said a lack of services or even waiting lists has forced many people to pay for a private diagnosis. The charity's chief executive Sarah Salters added that some people who do get a private diagnosis cannot then get medication from their GP through the NHS. The Department of Health said officials "are considering longer-term arrangements" for ADHD services, with future decisions "likely to be subject to ministerial approval and availability of funding". Read full story Source: BBC News, 2 April 2023 -
Content ArticleAn expert review of the clinical records of 44 deceased patients who had been under the care of neurologist Dr Michael Watt has found there were “significant failures” in their treatment and care. Dr Watt, a former Belfast Health and Social Care Trust consultant neurologist, was at the centre of Northern Ireland’s largest ever recall of patients, which began in 2018, after concerns were raised about his clinical work. More than 4,000 of his former patients attended recall appointments. At the direction of the Department of Health, in August 2021, the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) commissioned the Royal College of Physicians to undertake an expert review of the clinical records of certain deceased patients who had been under the care of Dr Watt, with the intention to understand his clinical practice, to ensure learning for others and to help make care better and safer in the future.
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News ArticleShortages and rising costs of medicines could result in patients not receiving important prescriptions, community pharmacists have warned. Commonly prescribed drugs used to treat conditions such as osteoporosis, high blood pressure and mental health are among those affected. The Department of Health (DoH) said a support package worth £5.3m for the sector is being finalised. But Community Pharmacy NI said this "falls way short of what is needed". David McCrea from Dundela Pharmacy said the price of some medicines had been raised "fiftyfold". "As a community pharmacist for over 30 years, I have never witnessed the price of medicines rise this sharply," Mr McCrea said. "It is becoming increasingly hard for us to afford to buy the medicines from wholesalers because we are not being paid the full cost of these drugs by the department." Mr McCrea added the current situation was causing "financial stress" and was becoming unsustainable. "The bottom line is that we are now facing the situation where we will not be able to afford to supply our patients with essential medicines, within weeks." Read full story Source: BBC News, 18 October 2022
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News Article
NI 'needs mother and baby mental health unit'
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
An appeal to establish a dedicated Mother and Baby Perinatal Mental Health Unit will be delivered to the Nothern Ireland health minister later. Individual women, charities and other organisations will hand over a public letter urging Robin Swann to act. Northern Ireland is the only place in the UK which has no dedicated in-patient service for women with serious post-partum mental health issues. The units admit mothers with their babies so that they can be with them. About 70 women a year in Northern Ireland are admitted to hospital with post-partum psychosis. The health minister approved some funding for perinatal mental health last year. However, no decision has been made on in-patient services. Read full story Source: BBC, 10 October 2022 -
News Article
‘Know, Check, Ask’ before you take medication urges Northern Ireland's Minister
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Both patients and healthcare staff have a central role to play in ensuring the safe use of medicines, Health Minister Robin Swann has said. Minister for Health Robin Swann was speaking at an event to mark the roll out of the ‘Know, Check, Ask’ Campaign across all healthcare sectors in Northern Ireland. The aim of the campaign is to increase awareness and understanding about the importance of using medicine safely. The call for action of the campaign is for: Patients to Know Check Ask – Before you take it: KNOW your medicines and keep an up-to-date list. CHECK that you are using your medicines in the right way. ASK your healthcare professional if you’re not sure. Health Care staff to Know Check Ask – Before you give it: KNOW your medications. CHECK you have the right: patient, medicine, route, dose and time. ASK your patient if they understand and ask your colleagues when you are unsure. Minister Swann added “I want to encourage and help patients to be more curious about their medication, know what medication they are using, how to use it safely and feel able to ask their health care professionals questions about their medicines. Patients should also feel able and confident to report problems with their medication early and so help reduce avoidable harm.” Read full story Source: Department of Health, 30 September 2022 -
News Article
NI Health: Cancer treatment waits show 'system is failing'
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The number of people in Northern Ireland waiting more than a month to start cancer treatment is five times higher than a decade ago. Macmillan Cancer research collated between April 2011 and March 2012 said on average 18 people each month waited more than a month for treatment. By March 2022 that monthly figure had increased to 92 people - or by more than 400%. Macmillan Cancer said the jump revealed a system that was "failing" patients. Sarah Christie, Macmillan policy and public affairs manager, told BBC News NI that the figures revealed a "dark insight into a healthcare system that is failing time and again to meet the needs of people living with cancer". Ms Christie said: "People have a right to be frustrated. They deserve access to care at the right time. "We need a government in place so that change can happen and, crucially, that the three-year budget that had been planned before the executive collapsed can be signed off. "It is impossible to deliver transformation on short-term budget." Read full story Source: BBC News, 29 September 2022 -
News ArticleA Northern Ireland hospital closed its doors to new admissions on Saturday night because conditions had become unsafe, a health chief has said. Jennifer Welsh, chief executive at the Northern Health Trust, said the situation in the emergency department (ED) at Antrim Area Hospital on Monday remained “extremely pressured”. A major incident was declared at the weekend when a high number of critically ill patients arrived in quick succession at the Co Antrim hospital, prompting the decision to temporarily close the doors to new admissions. Ms Welsh said there were 45 patients in the ED on Monday for whom a decision to admit had been made, but for whom no bed is available. She told the BBC Good Morning Ulster programme: “That would have been unthinkable about four or five years ago, we would have never seen numbers like that." She said: “We had a high number of people arriving. A very high number of patients in the department. “At the time we called the incident there were 131 patients and about 66 of them had a decision to admit and no bed available. “At that stage our resuscitation unit was already full, it was over full. “Then we got the news we had three more standby ambulances coming in. That is critically ill patients who had to be brought into our resuscitation department as quickly as possible and we simply could not cope. “The safest thing to do in those circumstances is to call the major incident, to effectively close the door and what that means is that people are conveyed to the next nearest emergency department to ensure they begin the urgent treatment that they need because we were not able to do that. “It was the right call to say that it was unsafe. It was unsafe at that time.” Read full story Source: The Independent, 14 November 2022
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News Article
Northern Ireland carers 'suffer shocking levels of poor health'
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Unpaid carers in Northern Ireland are suffering from "shocking levels of poor health", according to the charity Carers NI. In a survey of more than 1,600 unpaid carers across Northern Ireland, more than a quarter of respondents described their mental health as bad or very bad. One in five carers said the same about their physical health. The survey also found some 40% had not had a break from caring during the previous year and 23% said support services in their area did not meet their needs. Tracey Gililand, from Portadown, cares for her two disabled sons and said families like hers have been all but forgotten since the beginning of the pandemic. "Carers are still having to ask for the full return of much-needed day care and respite services and it feels like we've been left to paddle our own canoes with no help," she said. "No one knows our struggles, the many sleepless nights and exhaustion during the day. The impact on carers' mental health. The isolation that families like us experience that no one else sees," Ms Gililand explained. Carers NI said it has called for a legal right to social care support for all unpaid carers, the appointment of an independent carers' champion to advocate for carers to government, and wider transformation of the health system. Craig Harrison from the charity said carers had been "driving themselves into the ground", and were physically exhausted and in a state of constant anxiety. Read full story Source: BBC News, 8 November 2022 -
Content ArticleThis document sets out the Northern Ireland Department of Health's ambitions to improve medication safety in Northern Ireland, in line with the World Health Organization's Third Global Patient Safety Challenge 'Medication without Harm'. It outlines the need for safer use of medicines in Northern Ireland and highlights four ways in which the Department for Health will address these challenges: Engagement with patients and the public Introducing new systems and practice Engagement and training of health and social care staff Reducing the burden of avoidable harm from high-risk medicines by building good practice in to the supply of all medications
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Content ArticleThe Muckamore Abbey Hospital Public Inquiry is a statutory inquiry established under the Inquiries Act 2005, to examine the issue of abuse of patients at Muckamore Abbey Hospital (MAH). It aims to determine why the abuse happened and the range of circumstances that allowed it to happen. The purpose of the Inquiry is to ensure that such abuse does not occur again at MAH or any other institution in Northern Ireland which provides similar services. This website contains all documentation, reports and news about the inquiry.
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EventuntilPharmacy Forum NI and the DoH Strategic Planning & Performance Group (SPPG) have created a three-part webinar series entitled, ‘A systematic Approach to Insulin Safety in Community Pharmacy’. The first webinar in the series will take place on Wednesday 21 September 2022 at 7-9pm via Zoom and will focus on an introduction to human factors, concepts & tools, and their relevance to patient/medication safety and the wellbeing of the pharmacy team. Event programme and registration Who should attend? These events are targeted at all members of the community pharmacy team who play a part in the safe supply of medicines to patients, namely: pharmacists and foundation trainee pharmacists pharmacy technicians and assistants owners and superintendents medicines safety leads Guest speakers We are delighted to partner with Professor Paul Bowie and Dr Helen Vosper for the three-part event series. Professor Paul Bowie is a Safety Scientist, Medical Educator and Chartered Ergonomist and Human Factors specialist. He has over 25 years’ experience in a range of quality and safety leadership and advisory roles in healthcare, medical defence, military medicine and academia. He gained his doctorate in significant event analysis from the University of Glasgow in 2004 and has published over 150 papers on healthcare quality and safety in international peer-reviewed journals and co-edited a book on safety and improvement. Paul is also Honorary Professor and a PhD supervisor/examiner in the Institute of Health and Wellbeing at the University of Glasgow and a Visiting Professor at Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada. He is Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and the Royal College of General Practitioners, and a Chartered Member of the UK Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors where he is the patient safety lead of the healthcare specialist interest group Dr Helen Vosper is a chartered ergonomist and graduate of the Loughborough Human Factors Masters Programme and an academic with 15 years’ experience of teaching Human Factors to healthcare students and professionals, including pharmacy students and pharmacists. She is currently the lead for Patient Safety in the School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition at the University of Aberdeen. Helen also has a part-time role as a Senior Investigation Science Educator at the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch and is a scientific adviser in Human Factors and Patient Safety to NHS Education for Scotland.
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Content ArticleEuropean guidelines advise that patients suffering ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) should be revascularised within 120 minutes of diagnosis. The preferred method of revascularization is primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI). This study in BMJ Heart analysed the Northern Irish STEMI database to establish the proportion of pPCI delivered within the recommended treatment window. It aimed to determine whether there was any difference in long-term survival for patients treated beyond the recommended time window. The authors found that delays that result in primary PCI beyond 120 minutes from diagnostic ECG are associated with a significantly increased risk of mortality following STEMI in Northern Ireland.
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News Article
Organ donation: Change to Northern Ireland law passes final hurdle
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Campaigners have welcomed the "life-saving" legislation to bring opt-out organ donation to Northern Ireland. The legislation, which will align Northern Ireland with the rest of the UK, passed its final stage in the assembly on Tuesday. It means people will automatically become donors unless they specifically state otherwise. Máirtín MacGabhann, whose son Dáithí is waiting on a heart transplant, said it was "phenomenal". The bill is to be known as 'Dáithí's Law' after the five-year-old whose family have campaigned for the law change. Mr MacGabhann said it was an emotional day for them. He told BBC NI's Evening Extra programme: "The most important thing, regardless of the name, is that it's passed its final stage and that life-saving legislation will go through." Read full story Source: BBC News, 9 February 2022 -
News Article
Hormone replacement therapy: Northern Ireland shortage 'distressing' for women
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The shortage of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in Northern Ireland is distressing for women and challenging for pharmacies trying to access it, according to a community pharmacist. Loretto McManus advised women to leave plenty of time for ordering their prescriptions. The Health and Social Care Board said there were "some treatments which are currently experiencing supply issues". HRT helps many women control their often difficult menopausal symptoms. There is a national shortage of HRT with officials citing several reasons including manufacturing delays, an increase in demand and possibly Brexit. Ms McManus said certain products were out of stock in pharmacies across Northern Ireland and that this was "distressing" for women who have become used to particular treatments. "As a community pharmacist the utmost care of our patients is premium to us," she said. "Trying to source the prescribed product in a timely manner for the patient can be challenging." Several women have told BBC News NI that they were being offered substitutes or had to source the medication themselves. Kathryn Schreuder, part of a Northern Ireland menopause support group, said: "For a lot of women, their concern is, if their medication isn't available and they have just maybe spent six months to a year getting the right level of what they need, for that suddenly to be changed because of the limitation of what is available is very distressing." Read full story Source: BBC News, 7 November 2021 -
Content ArticleInvestigation of a complaint against the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust A Trust’s failure to perform an examination of a patient on admission to hospital meant he was not assessed by medical staff against this baseline during his time on the ward.
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Content ArticleThe Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) has published its independent 'Review of the implementation of recommendations to prevent choking incidents in Northern Ireland'. The Review examined the measures and governance arrangements in place to prevent choking, in line with current guidance, focusing on the work undertaken in high-risk areas across health and social care, including stroke care, care of the elderly and services for those with physical and/or mental health and learning disabilities. The Review found that there was a clear and urgent need to improve the quality and safety of care provided to people at risk of choking. The key recommendations in the Review include: training for staff including clinicians, catering and domestic teams; shorter waiting times for assessment by Speech and Language Therapy; better systems for communication between staff, and safer systems for ordering and storing food.
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Content Article
This is part of our series of Patient Safety Spotlight interviews, where we talk to people working for patient safety about their role and what motivates them. Angela talks to us about how her role enables her to promote collaboration for patient safety between different layers of the healthcare system. She also tells us about how Northern Ireland is using World Patient Safety Day 2022 to help the public and healthcare staff understand how they can contribute to medication safety.
