13.10.11
Elderly care below standards
Elderly care in some hospitals is not meeting up to dignity and nutrition standards, according to an assessment by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Unannounced visits were carried out at 100 hospitals and concerns were identified in 55 cases.
These included a lack of support for those needed help eating, poor hygiene, call bells being placed out of the reach of patients, staff speaking in a condescending or dismissive way and curtains not being closed properly. In many cases patients were not able to clean their hands before meals.
Health Secretary Andrew Lansley ordered the inspections after several critical reports. Out of the 100 hospitals visited, 35 met official standards but had room for improvement, and 20 were found to be failing on one or both of the dignity and nutrition standards. The report identified three main reasons for the failures; a lack of leadership, poor attitude among staff and a lack of resources.
Michelle Mitchell, charity director of Age UK, said: “Today’s findings show that nearly one in five hospitals completely fail to ensure that patients are eating and treated with dignity, and in total nearly half of all hospitals are not doing enough. This shows shocking complacency on the part of those hospitals towards an essential part of good healthcare and there are no excuses.
“We want to see the important work done by the CQC’s spot checks strengthened. The Government must compel all hospitals to publish data showing malnutrition rates on their wards in a form the public can understand.”
Jo Webber, deputy director of policy at the NHS Confederation, said: “Every NHS patient, whatever their age, deserves to be treated with fairness, dignity and respect and to receive care that meets their fundamental care needs. To offer anything less is completely unacceptable and we should be absolutely clear about that on behalf of everyone in the NHS.
“NHS organisations have a responsibility to scrutinise where quality of care is not up to standard. NHS trust boards need good systems in place to closely analyse information about quality of care. It is essential that everyone in the system, from boards to Government, nurtures good quality leadership and values the role it plays in delivering the best care for patients.
“Patient dignity is a problem the NHS must own and take responsibility for. Only by doing this can we encourage organisations to meet the standards they set themselves.”
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