30.06.16
NHS promises improvement after review finds shortcomings in child heart services
The NHS has pledged to improve its care for child patients with heart problems after a review found shortcomings at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children.
Two reports into the hospital’s death rate for children following heart surgery between 2012 and 2014, by independent barrister Eleanor Grey and the CQC, were published today.
They found that care was broadly comparable with care at other hospitals, but sometimes suffered from shortages of qualified nurses and failed to respond adequately to concerns raised by parents and the CQC.
Responding to the report, Sir Bruce Keogh, NHS England’s medical director, said: I was deeply moved by the experiences of the families in Bristol. We wanted to ensure that those families were given a voice and that their concerns were fully investigated. The inquiry has been both independent and thorough.
“Children’s heart surgery is highly complex and technically demanding and carries with it significant and unavoidable risk. I know the team in Bristol will embrace this report and has already taken action to improve care for patients. The hospital provides critical services and we want it to provide outstanding care in the future.
“Quality is not just about survival it is about many other things. These families experiences tell a very powerful story not just for Bristol but for the rest of the NHS in terms of compassion and how we treat people in their darkest moments.”
The report said that NHS England should gather and publish the data necessary to assess the implementation of the national child heart disease standard that tertiary centres should employ one consultant cardiologist for every half million people served.
It also said that University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust should review the adequacy of staffing and information given to parents at the point of diagnosis.
Dr Jonathan Fielden, NHS England’s director of specialised commissioning, said: “Over the past year we have built, with expert clinicians and patients, a clear consensus on the standards that need to be met to ensure a consistent level of care is available for every patient in every part of the country.”
He added that NHS England will announce its practical steps to improve care for children with heart disease by April 2017 at the latest.
Robert Woolley, chief executive of the trust, said: “We are deeply sorry for the things we got wrong - for when our care fell below acceptable standards, for not supporting some families as well as we could have and for not always learning adequately from our mistakes. This undoubtedly added to the distress of families at an already very upsetting time for them. We didn't get it right for these families, and I'd like to apologise to the families unreservedly, on behalf of everyone at the trust.”
Dr Bryony Strachan, clinical chair of the women's and children's division of the trust, said that the trust had already spent £1m on additional staff for children with heart problems and now had one nurses to every three patients and one for two on the high dependency unit, as well as an extra psychologist.
(Image c. Ben Birchall from PA Wire and Press Association Images)
Have you got a story to tell? Would you like to become an NHE columnist? If so, click here.