The safety of NHS patients treated in private hospitals has been raised directly with health secretary Jeremy Hunt following the death of an NHS patient.
Assistant coroner for Manchester West Simon Nelson has written to the health and social care secretary warning about poor processes for emergency transfers, the lack of responsibility private companies have for consultants they use, and junior doctors working alone for 24 hour shifts with a lack of training and monitoring.
He has given Mr Hunt until next month to respond, following his investigation into the care of 77 year old Peter O’Donnell.
Mr O’Donnell, who was an NHS patient, died in January 2017 after hip replacement surgery at BMI Healthcare’s Beaumont Hospital in Bolton. His hospital-acquired pneumonia was not properly recognised by staff, who dialled 999 to rush him to the Royal Bolton Hospital four days after his surgery, where he suffered a cardiac arrest resulting from organ failure and sepsis. He died a few days later having never regained consciousness.
The coroner said Mr O’Donnell showed signs of a chest infection which were not acted on. He said: “Thereafter, by reason of ineffective communication between professionals, irregular observations and inadequate documentation, opportunities to escalate his care were missed. Antibiotic therapy was significantly delayed.”…read more
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