Leader calls for 'drastic action' after hospital trust fined £1.3m over patient deaths

Telford & Wrekin Council leader Shaun Davies spoke out after Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust was prosecuted over the deaths of Mohammed Ismael 'Bolly' Zaman, 31, and 83-year-old Max Dingle. Both patients died at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.

Mr Zaman, a trainee pharmacist from Wellington, was having dialysis treatment in October 2019 when his lines became disconnected, causing him to lose three pints of blood in seven minutes. Former policeman Mr Dingle died when his head and neck became trapped in between the mattress and the railing on his bariatric bed. When staff found him, his face had turned purple. Mr Dingle went into cardiac arrest and died.

The trust admitted failing in both cases. Staff failed to follow guidance to keep lines uncovered and not to fasten them to the bed in the lead-up to Mr Zaman's death. And it was accepted that staff had not had proper training to operate the type of bed in which Mr Dingle became trapped.

Councillor Shaun Davies, leader of Telford and Wrekin Council, said: “My heart goes out to the families of both Mohammed and Max who died unnecessarily due to a lack of safe patient care.

“Sadly, I am also aware of very recent cases where residents have felt compelled to share their experiences of poor care with me.

“There are some very serious questions to be answered on how this has been allowed to happen in a hospital which has already been judged by the Care Quality Commission as 'inadequate' and has been the focus of government intervention for many years. This is unacceptable and drastic action is needed.

“Safe care is a basic right and as a council on the side of our residents, we will continue to challenge local NHS leaders on plans for improvement and again call on government to provide what is needed for our hospitals not just to operate safely, but to provide the standard of care that our residents deserve.

“Care within our hospitals, A&E waiting times, ambulance response times and GP access are far worse for residents of Telford and Wrekin and Shropshire than for those elsewhere in the country.

“The council have once again written to the Secretary of State for Health requesting an urgent meeting with him to agree real action and investment to deal with a health system which has been struggling for more than a decade.”