Information released overnight by the Department of Health has revealed a shocking lack of compliance by some hospitals with NHS alerts designed to prevent accidentals deaths.
In evidence secured from a Freedom of Information request made by the safety charity Action Against Medical Accidents (AvMA) it was shown that there were numerous incidences in hospitals failing to confirm compliance with alerts from the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) issued by the NHS. Chairman of the NPSA, Lord Patel of Dunkeld, was reported by the Guardian as stating in response to the news: “It’s not good enough…What’s the point of us developing these alerts if they don’t pay any attention to them?”.
Hospital oversights in confirming compliance included noticed covering practices designed to reduce the risk of patients falling out of bed, improving safety surrounding the injection of medicines, and practices covering the use of painkilling medicines.
In response to media reports a number of hospitals came forward stating that some alerts had been implemented however hospital administration staff had yet to update the alerts system.
The news has provoked a number of comments from both health staff and patients. What are your views and experiences on accident prevention in our hospitals and the ability of NHS staff to keep up to date with health guidelines?
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