Search the hub
Showing results for tags 'Patient suffering'.
-
News Article
We need to tell the public that hospitals are ‘horrible places’, urges trust CEO
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Hospitals are ‘horrible’ and unsafe places, which should be avoided ‘unless you really need to be there’, a longstanding trust chief executive has argued. East Suffolk and North Essex Foundation Trust boss Nick Hulme also said the NHS had to be honest about the state of its acute services. Speaking at a public meeting of the East Suffolk and North Essex Integrated Care Board, he described hospitals as “awful” and “horrible”, and said NHS leaders had “got to get that message out” to the public. He added: “The food’s rubbish, we don’t let you sleep, we don’t let you know what’s g- Posted
-
- Organisation / service factors
- Leadership
- (and 2 more)
-
News Article
Paramedics say people are getting ill because their homes are so cold
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Ambulance crews say they are treating a growing number of patients who are falling ill because they are unable to afford to heat their homes. The soaring cost of gas and electricity has forced many people to switch off their heating in the winter months. Scottish Ambulance Service crews say they are seeing people who are unwell because their homes are so cold or they cannot afford to eat properly. Charities have warned many people are dealing with a "toxic cocktail" of increasing energy bills, growing inflation and higher interest rates this winter. Glasgow ambulance worker- Posted
-
- Paramedic
- Patient suffering
- (and 4 more)
-
News Article
Ministers order ‘rapid review’ into mental health inpatient care in England
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Ministers have ordered an inquiry into the quality of care in mental health inpatient units in England after a series of scandals in which vulnerable patients were abused or neglected. Maria Caulfield, the mental health minister, announced the establishment of a “rapid review” in a written ministerial statement in the House of Commons on Monday. The inquiry “is an essential first step in improving safety in mental health inpatient settings”, she said. In recent years, coroners and the Care Quality Commission, the NHS care watchdog, have repeatedly raised concerns about dangerously in- Posted
-
- Mental health
- Investigation
- (and 5 more)
-
News Article
Cathy Rice had been in all-consuming pain for 18 months when she decided to fly to Lithuania. “I was going up the stairs on my hands and knees. I couldn’t get to the shop. I had no quality of life,” she says. Rice, 68, who has four grandchildren, had been told she needed a knee replacement for an injury caused by osteoarthritis but – like millions of NHS patients – faced a gruelling wait. At a clinic in Kaunas, Lithuania’s second largest city, the operation was arranged within weeks and cost €6,800 (£5,967) – around half the cost in the UK. The price included a pre-travel consultatio- Posted
-
- Private sector
- Patient suffering
- (and 2 more)
-
News Article
Dentists warn of permanent damage from clear braces ordered online
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Dentists have told the BBC that demand for Instagram smiles has left people with damage from wearing clear braces or "aligners" ordered online. One man said aligners weakened his front teeth, leaving him unable to bite into an apple. Smile Direct Club, the largest company selling clear aligners remotely, says they straighten teeth faster and cheaper than traditional braces. Its aligners have been successful for the majority of users, it says. But some dentists and orthodontists believe customers of so-called remote dentistry are unaware of harm that can be caused by aligners if- Posted
-
- Dentist
- Private sector
-
(and 3 more)
Tagged with:
-
News Article
Patients will suffer if ministers bow to nurses’ demands for pay rises, the health secretary has warned as tens of thousands of NHS staff walk out on today. Steve Barclay told the Independent said any boost to wages would “take billions of pounds away from where we need it most”. He wrote: “Unaffordable pay hikes will mean cutting patient care and stoking the inflation that would make us all poorer.” Today tens of thousands of nurses will strike across 55 trusts. NHS data shows 4,567 operations and 25,009 outpatient appointments were cancelled during the nurse’s strikes on 15 an- Posted
-
- Leadership
- Nurse
-
(and 2 more)
Tagged with:
-
News Article
Man waits eight years for mental health therapy as services hit by demand
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A man has waited eight years to get adequate mental health care, as waiting lists for therapy grow. Myles Cook, 47, from Essex, lives with severe depression and has been fighting to get one-to-one counselling for eight years but he has been told there are not enough therapists locally to respond to the demand. Instead, he has been referred to group sessions, which he said were “detrimental” to his condition and manages his condition with medication but said he did not find that helpful either. He said: “If you’re not getting help, and all you keep getting are pills and pills tha- Posted
-
- Long waiting list
- Mental health
- (and 3 more)
-
News Article
Surgical mesh: "I wish I could go back in time and not have my operation"
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Complications after a procedure to treat IBS left Jennifer Hill in pain – and fighting for compensation. Earlier this year, an NHS inquiry found surgeon Anthony Dixon had caused women to “suffer harm” as a result of the mesh operations he carried out between 2007 and 2017. Dixon, who is now banned from practising in the UK, carried out hundreds of laparoscopic ventral mesh rectopexy (LVMR) operations for both the North Bristol NHS Trust and privately at Bristol’s Spire Hospital. Mesh is used to repair the pelvic floor, but the inquiry concluded that women should have been offered alternat- Posted
-
- Womens health
- Patient harmed
- (and 3 more)
-
Community Post
Painful hysteroscopy
Claire Cox posted a topic in Patient stories
- Patient harmed
- Omissions
- (and 3 more)
What is your experience of having a hysteroscopy? We would like to hear - good or bad so that we can help campaign for safer, harm free care. You can read Patient Safety Learning's blog about improving hysteroscopy safety here. You'll need to be a hub member to comment below, it's quick and easy to do. You can sign up here.- Posted
- 248 replies
-
- Patient harmed
- Omissions
- (and 3 more)
-
News Article
Ambulances taking 90 minutes to get to 999 calls
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Patients with emergencies such as heart attacks and strokes in England had to wait more than 90 minutes on average for an ambulance at the end of 2022. It came after a sharp deterioration in 999 response times in December - they were nearly twice as bad as November. Record worst waits were also recorded for life-threatening cardiac arrests, while A&E waits of over four-hours reached their highest level ever. Patient groups warned the delays would be leading to real harm. Combined, the data - released by NHS England - represents the worst-ever set of emergency care figur- Posted
-
- Ambulance
- Organisation / service factors
-
(and 1 more)
Tagged with:
-
News Article
Man carries grandad into hospital amid ambulance shortage
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
When Steve Parsons's grandfather collapsed at his Monmouthshire home, his family immediately dialled 999. However when they were told there were no ambulances available, they had to take measures into their own hands. In desperation, Mr Parsons drove and then carried the 83-year-old, who had suffered a cardiac arrest, into the Grange Hospital near Cwmbran, Torfaen. Aneurin Bevan University Health Board (ABUHB) and Welsh Ambulance Service Trust (WAST) admitted the incident did not match the service they wished to offer - but said it was indicative of the "unprecedented" pressures- Posted
-
- Ambulance
- Patient suffering
-
(and 1 more)
Tagged with:
-
News Article
NHS patients resort to sleeping in cars as crisis deepens
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A combination of Covid, flu, and Strep A has seen more than a dozen trusts and ambulance services declare critical incidents in recent days. NHS patients are sleeping in their cars outside hospitals, as the chaos engulfing the health service is set to last until Easter. Some 13% of hospital beds in England are filled with people with Covid or flu, NHS England figures show, with the treatment backlog also at a record high of 7.2 million. But Matthew Taylor, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents health service managers, said no reprieve is expected until A- Posted
-
- Patient suffering
- Long waiting list
- (and 2 more)
-
Content Article
I love and support the NHS. But when things go wrong for patients and service users, the system is often too slow to change or respond effectively. I have been through complaints, the Ombudsman and Inquest processes around the poor end of life care of my late mother. Those processes took years and were almost as stressful as those last few days of my mother’s life. I would not do it again. At the time, I reported the incident in detail to the CQC (inspectors), to the CCG (commissioners), to Healthwatch (local and national), but I noted no evidence of change. In fact, the CQC continued for- Posted
- 2 comments
-
- Patient harmed
- Patient suffering
- (and 10 more)
-
News Article
Families of people with dementia have said there is a national crisis in care safety as it emerged that more than half of residential homes reported on by inspectors this year were rated “inadequate” or requiring improvement – up from less than a third pre-pandemic. Serious and often shocking failings uncovered in previously “good” homes in recent months include people left in bed “for months”, pain medicine not being administered, violence between residents and malnutrition – including one person who didn’t eat for a month. In homes in England where standards have slumped from “good- Posted
- 1 comment
-
- Dementia
- Organisation / service factors
- (and 6 more)
-
Content Article
My experience of suspected 'Long COVID'
PatientSafetyLearning Team posted an article in Blogs
Dr Jake Suett: My experience of suspected 'Long COVID' I have been unwell for 109 days now, and the entire illness has been incredibly frightening, with episodes of severe shortness of breath, cardiac-type chest pains and palpitations to name a few. I think I am slowly improving but am left with residual symptoms that have never gone away entirely but regularly return strongly in waves. In March, I was working as a staff grade intensive care doctor. I was working closely with patients with COVID-19 and had an illness that began with fever, dry cough and shortness of breath. I had bra- Posted
- 3 comments
-
- Post-virus support
- Virus
- (and 3 more)
-
News Article
93-year-old left ‘screaming in pain’ on floor during 25-hour ambulance wait
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The Welsh ambulance service has apologised after a 93-year-old woman was left “screaming in pain” while lying on the floor with a broken hip during a 25-hour ambulance wait. Elizabeth Davies fell at her care home on Saturday and was finally picked up at 1.15pm on Sunday and admitted to Ysbyty Gwynedd hospital in Bangor on Monday, where she endured another 12-hour wait before being admitted to a ward. A hip fracture was later confirmed in surgery. Her family have said the incident, which occurred before a 24-hour strike on Wednesday by ambulance workers, was “unacceptable”. Her son, I- Posted
-
- Older People (over 65)
- Pain
- (and 5 more)
-
News Article
The Birmingham MP Preet Gill has called on the UK health secretary to launch a major public inquiry into allegations that a bullying and a toxic culture is risking patient safety at University Hospitals Birmingham (UHB). The MP for Edgbaston, where UHB is based, said she had received complaints from staff alleging elderly patients had been left on beds in corridors outside wards due to mismanagement, and medics were discouraged from speaking out about problems. In a letter to Steve Barclay, seen by the Guardian, Gill said: “I have been inundated by messages from UHB staff, past and p- Posted
-
- Investigation
- Whistleblowing
- (and 5 more)
-
News Article
Nine ambulance trusts in England and Wales are expected to be affected by industrial action on Wednesday, coordinated by the GMB, Unison and Unite unions. The ambulance strikes will involve paramedics as well as control-room staff and support workers. The threat to patient safety on Wednesday will be exceptional. Under trade union laws, life-preserving care must be provided during the strikes. But there remains a lack of clarity about what will be offered. Even at this late stage, NHS leaders say negotiations are continuing between unions and ambulance services to agree which inciden- Posted
-
- Ambulance
- Staff factors
- (and 5 more)
-
News Article
The mental health patients dying on NHS wards from starvation and neglect
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Asystemic failure to provide basic physical care on NHS mental health wards is killing patients across the country, despite scores of warnings from coroners over the past decade, The Independent can reveal. An investigation has uncovered at least 50 “prevention of future death” reports – used by coroners to warn health services of widespread failures – since 2012, involving 26 NHS trusts and private healthcare providers. Cases include deaths caused by malnutrition, lack of exercise, and starvation in patients detained in mental health facilities. Experts warn that poor training and a- Posted
-
- Mental health
- Coroner reports
- (and 4 more)
-
News Article
One in eight UK adults using private medical care due to NHS delays
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
One in eight adults in the UK have paid for private medical care in the last year because of long delays in getting NHS treatment, renewing fears that the NHS is becoming “a two-tier system”. “Around one in eight (13%) adults reported they had paid for private medical care, with 5% using private insurance and 7% paying for the treatment themselves,” according to a new report by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Patients also say that waiting for tests or treatment is badly affecting them, including making their illness worse. The ONS survey of 2,510 adults across the UK- Posted
-
- Private sector
- Adult
- (and 3 more)
-
News Article
NHS operations cancelled in England due to staff shortages double in three years
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The number of operations cancelled by the NHS in England because of staff shortages may have doubled in three years, with an estimated 30,000 not proceeding because no staff were available to perform them. At least a third of cancelled operations were those that were deemed urgent, according to the analysis by Labour. It suggested at least 2,500 cancelled operations for cancer patients and 8,000 on children. It found staff shortages were the most common reason given for cancellations by hospitals, accounting for one in five of all operations cancelled for non-clinical reasons last ye- Posted
-
- Surgery - General
- Lack of resources
- (and 3 more)