Staff lift lid on A&E crisis
Saturday 16th May 2009, 10:55AM BST.
Five hospital employees have been praised for lifting the lid on an acute staff and beds shortage at Telford’s Princess Royal Hospital.
Both Mr Michael Gwynne, Telford & Wrekin coroner, and Chris Ward, son-in-law of an 80-year-old widow who died after waiting seven hours to see a doctor, commended the five women for highlighting the crisis – and Mr Ward said he hoped there were “no reprisals”.
Hospital chiefs have apologised and promised more nurses, better initial diagnosis and measures to prevent “bed blocking”.
Mr Ward, of Lilleshall, said: “The family is so grateful to these nurses for giving evidence and we hope there are no reprisals against them. They are very brave to speak out in today’s society.”
The issues were highlighted at the inquest of retired civil servant Kathleen Mobbs, of Oldfield Road, Dawley. She was sent to hospital after a 999 call from her GP Paul Spencer during a home visit on November 14 last year.
But all the beds in the Medical Assessment Unit – which is supposed to be the destination for GP admissions – were full.
Mrs Mobbs was instead taken to an overstretched A&E department, admitted at 1.25pm, did not see a doctor until 8.30pm and died at 9.20pm from previously undiagnosed terminal cancer.
Yesterday’s inquest heard from emergency room acting manager Vanessa Roberts, Sisters Barbara Williams and Kim Parsons and Staff Nurses Caroline Burns and Yvonne Gough.
All said there was a dire shortage of staff and beds, with GP patients and “ordinary” emergency cases regularly waiting for hours in casualty, or being kept in corridors or ambulances.
Sister Parsons, who was in charge that afternoon, said all the nurses in A&E felt stressed because their mission was to provide the best care possible for sick and injured people.
“We support each other . . . but as each hour passes, patients become more agitated and start taking it out on the staff,” she said.
Mr Gwynne praised the nurses, saying he understood their nervousness about speaking out in public. “I firmly believe the death of Mrs Mobbs was the catalyst for change,” he said.
By Peter Johnson
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My parnter wastaken into the PRH via an ambulance from her GP. She arrived at 6pm and no doctor saw her untill 11pm. She was eventually admitted to a ward at 3.45 in the morning.
During that time she was in a corridoor of A&E on a trolly along with 9 other patients. This was only due to the lack of staff, the lack of beds on wards through out the hospital.
The following morning a cheif exec walked the ward to see his hospital working in perfect order….however if he were to see what was going on at the A&E he would see what crisis that his hospital is really in.
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Surely some mistake – hasn’t our government boasted that NHS spending is at an all time high?
Where has all the money gone? (A clue – ask the shareholders in the PFI companies….).
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Mick – why would some smart suited, 9 to 5 pencil pusher want to venture down to the depths of A&E where he might risk being faced with queues of seriously ill or injured people aiting to see the one doctor and not many more nurses on duty – it might affect what boxes he could tick on his next ‘glowing’ report of success to the Health Authority !!!!
Only this week the Star has published details of the latest number crunching scam – kepeing patients in the back of the ambulance as long as possible so the A&E turnaround times are kept low.
Heaven forbid, he might also see the sight of blood !!!!
I seriously don’t think any of us have anything but the highest admiration for the skills and dedication of medical staff at the PRH (or indeed any other NHS hospital) – but I’ve been in there on a Saturday night when there just aren’t enough people, beds or equipment to deal with what they are presented with – and that’s before the proposed 40% manufactured growth in Telford’s population which the Government has already said there will be no more money to fund an expansion of the emergency services locally !!!!!!
And don’t forget, these are the same people who are again considering it a practical solution to combine many of the services at Shrewsbury and Telford.
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i work at the hospital you will never see a+e staff on a dineer or having five telford population is now to big for prh to cope fifty beds have been lost in the last five years the only solution is to make it biger it realy is not the staffs fault and should be prased not hounded
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My Husband went to shropdoc 9.20pm on 15th Feb this year, and was told he needed admitting. there were no beds available so he waited in A&E in great pain for 18hrs before a bed was found on a surgical ward, only to be moved a few days later into the day ward which was being used as an overflow ward. When will things improve.
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Whislt the answer to this problem is not completely straightforward it is pretty simple and involves only common sense, not consultants or spending millions on a strategic review.
Would the PRH like me to come and have a look at the problem and propose a solution – I would be happy to do it for the NHS for free
Like many people I have visitied A&E in the past and been utterly amazed at the process and even more amazed at the way that most of the effort seems to go on fiddling the statistics rather than treating the patients.
Only one condition to my offer – the Chief Exec comes with me and we have a film crew and reporter there too so that we can record our findings for all to see. That way no one will be able to hide!!
How about it PRH!!
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The solution is go private. It will only cost you 30pounds a month to go private and in the long term the cost outweighs the poor NHS hospitals where you are likely to come out worse than you went in.
If however you do not wish to pay to have private healthcare you should NOT complain about your poor treatment on the NHS and be thankful your treatment is free.
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Two points Y Mab:
- if you are being treated in a private hospital and you develop serious complications you’ll end up being treated in an NHS hospital – intensive therapy units aren’t exactly common in the private sector.
- what are you on about: “your treatment is free”? If you don’t pay tax and NI maybe, otherwise you pay for the NHS – through the nose
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Y Mab Darogan
30 pounds a month to pay for private healthcare to solve the problem of a failing NHS. Good point. One thing you’ve overlooked though ~ the private sector don’t have critical care facilities, so if your operation goes wrong, they rush you to the nearest overworked NHS ITU. Then ~ if you die, the death gets recorded against the stats for the NHS system, rather than the private hospital. Great isn’t it? The private sector come out of it squeaky clean AGAIN!!!!
Hefty taxes on privAte treatment should be levied in order to plough more money into the NHS.
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Rob. telford – those who go private also pay NI and tax, we are not let off paying those 2 taxes just because we choose to go private. Therefore the NHS is free compared to those of who pay to go private.
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