patients die of starvation in NHS Hospital

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dreama

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Martin Ryan, 43, was left unable to swallow after suffering a stroke but a "total breakdown in communication" meant he was never fitted with a feeding tube.

Doctors thought that nurses were feeding him through a tube in his nose, an internal inquiry by the hospital found.

But by the time they discovered this was not happening, he was too weak for an operation to insert a tube into his stomach. Mr Ryan, who had Down's syndrome, died in agony five days later.

Disability charity Mencap said the case was one of several where the NHS "completely and unacceptably failed" patients with learning difficulties through a "catalogue of disasters".

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman is expected to issue a similarly damning verdict on the NHS later this month.

Other cases highlighted by Mencap include Emma Kemp, 26, who was denied cancer treatment that could have saved her life.

Another patient Mark Cannon, 30, died two months after being admitted to hospital with a broken leg.

Three other cases followed similar patterns, with warnings ignored or problems missed until it was too late, often because the patients had difficulty communicating.

The father of one man who died, who was just 20, said: 'People like my son are treated as less than human'.

The six cases were raised by Mencap in a report entitled Death By Indifference.

A spokesman for the charity said last night: "These people were completely and unacceptably failed by the treatment they received.

"It was a catalogue of disasters and poor treatment of very vulnerable people who deserved so much more.

"We are hoping that the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman gets justice for the families of these patients.

"It would be irrational and perverse to say anything other than that there were grotesque failures for these people."

Mark Goldring, Mencap's chief executive, said: "Our report exposed the horrific deaths of six people with a learning disability who died unnecessarily in NHS care.

"We have fought and will continue our fight for justice for their families.

"The Ombudsman's reports must condemn the appalling failings of the NHS in these six cases.

"They need to make it impossible for people with a learning disability to continue to die unnecessarily. A failure to do this would be irrational and perverse.

"The reports have a duty to challenge complacency, where it has been shown to exist within the health service, when treating people with a learning disability and must hold individuals to account for their actions."

The Ombudsman's inquiry, which covers just the six cases, will mirror the findings of a wider investigation into the treatment of vulnerable patients which was ordered by the Government after Mencap's report came out.

Chaired by Sir Jonathan Michael, a former chief executive of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, it found that the deaths highlighted by the charity were 'not isolated' incidents.
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Patient 'died of starvation in NHS hospital' - Telegraph
 
How nice. And a person with Down Syndrome. Hmm, Palin's on to something.
 
Looking at the forum topic headline and seeing the plural word "Patients" led me to think it was more than one.

Then seeing the actual singular word "patient" from the news article.

Hey, pay more attention to the grammar class! :nono:

:P :P :P

Yiz
 
On a serious note, that is a very tragic situation, something that was avoidable, but wasn't. I hope whoever is responsible gets locked up.

Unfortunately, this isn't the first time this had happened.

I recall significantly the abuses from Indiana State Hospital and the deaths that occurred there, a woman drowned in the bathtub, the abuses, the beatings, all by various staff members and it's medical staffers as well.

But that didn't stop there, just Google it all up and you'll find plenty of horror stories from there.
 
exactly, it doesn't make a difference what type of healthcare we get, the result will be the same.
 
Banjo said:
Oh right, and all doctors in the USA never make any mistakes and don't get sued for malpractice.

Please, it happens everywhere.
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That's a good point. This kind of thing happens everywhere. Nursing home care here in the US is abominable. Sadly, things like this are commonplace in US nursing homes.
 
Purge of nurses promised after report reveals shocking cruelty suffered by 1m NHS patients By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 3:57 PM on 27th August 2009
Nurses who offer patients poor levels of care face being struck off, the Government's chief nursing officer said today.

Christine Beasley said the shocking stories of cruelty contained in a damning report from the Patients Association were distressing and should make 'sombre reading for the nursing profession'.

The study by the Patients Association revealed how some had been left without food or drink and others forced to sleep in soiled bedclothes.

The charity estimates up to a million patients have experienced poor care from the NHS in recent years.
Appalling: The report found standards of care at Stafford Hospital appalling
Ms Beasley said the care offered to some of the patients was 'clearly unacceptable'.

She added: 'They make not only very distressing reading for patients but very sombre reading for the nursing profession.

'I think any nurse that provides that sort of care - or in fact does not provide that sort of care - should be treated very, very seriously and if necessary, if it's at that level, should absolutely be struck off'.

Unveiling the report, Claire Rayner said she was 'sickened' by the deteriorating standards of her former profession.

The agony aunt, who is chairman of the Patients Association, called for bad nurses to be struck off.

The association holds a database of hundreds of stories of patients badly treated by the NHS. The report presents 16 of those in detail.

Among them was 86-year-old Leslie Kirk, who had to endure a 'nightmare of NHS care' after a stroke.

Toilets he used were not cleaned properly and his personal alarm was taken away apparently because he rang it too much.
Meanwhile lung cancer sufferer Colin Purkiss Smith, who was being treated at the Princess Royal University Hospital in Bromley, was forced to soil himself after waiting an hour for help.

Mr Purkiss, who died when he was 62, was unable to eat solid food but was given no alternative at the hospital. Despite having difficulty drinking, he was not offered a straw or a beaker.



The report comes months after the Healthcare Commission found appalling standards of care at Stafford Hospital, which led to between 400 and 1,200 more patients dying than would have been expected in a three-year period.

Katherine Murphy, director of the Patients Association, said similarly bad standards could be found elsewhere.

She called for the health watchdog, the Care Quality Commission, to conduct an 'urgent review of the standards of basic care' in hospital.

'These accounts tell the story of the 2 per cent of patients that consistently rate their care as poor,' she said. 'If this was extrapolated to the whole of the NHS from 2002 to 2008 it would equate to over one million patients.

'Very often these are the most vulnerable elderly and terminally ill patients.'

In a foreword to the report, Mrs Rayner said: 'For far too long now, we have been receiving calls on our helpline from people wanting to talk about the dreadful, neglectful, demeaning, painful and sometimes downright cruel treatment their elderly relatives had experienced at the hands of NHS nurses.'

She added: 'These bad, cruel nurses may be - probably are - a tiny proportion of the nursing work force, but even if they are only 1 or 2 per cent of the whole they should be identified and struck off the register.'

The Daily Mail has highlighted the poor standards of nursing care as part of its Dignity for the Elderly campaign.

Dr Peter Carter, chief executive of the Royal College of Nursing, said the vast majority of nurses were 'decent, highly skilled individuals'.
Chief Nursing Officer for the Department fo Health, Chris Beasley, said: 'All patients deserve the highest quality of care from the NHS and the poor care received in these cases is simply unacceptable.
'Where care falls below expected standards, this can be distressing for the patients concerned and their families and we expect trusts to take immediate action to investigate and ensure this does not happen again. Patients and their families — and indeed staff — should feel able to raise this with the hospital management.
'The NHS treats millions of people every day and the vast majority of patients experience good quality, safe and effective care - the Care Quality Commission's recent patient experience survey shows that 93 percent of patients rate their overall care as good or excellent.'

Ann McNeill - Left in soiled bed clothes and her own vomit
Ann McNeill was labelled a 'drama queen' for gasping in pain when a nurse handled her roughly

The former nurse was called a 'drama queen', left in soiled bed clothes and her own vomit and berated for waking staff at night to ask for a drink.

Her husband said: 'Ann couldn't relate the attitude and actions of some of the nurses with how she had been trained to look after people.

'One night two nurses were hoisting her into bed and one handled her very roughly, knocking her legs. She gasped in pain and the nurse said: "Oh, we've got a drama queen here."

'I remember on one occasion I visited her and found her sitting in a chair with her own vomit all over her clothes.

'It was dried so it seemed as if it must have been left there for some time.

'There was also dried vomit in a bowl next to her. I looked up and down the ward and couldn't find a nurse anywhere.'

Pamela Goddard - Died from a bedsore after months in hospital

Pamela Goddard experienced an 'agonising' death from a bed sore
The 82-year-old was taken to East Surrey Hospital after breaking her leg.

She experienced an 'agonising death' from a bed sore which was the culmination of several months of care in the hospital and at the Royal Surrey Hospital, Guildford.

Her son, Adrian Goddard, said she was rarely turned and was put on a mattress to relieve her pressure sore, but this was broken and never fixed, despite being brought to the attention of staff.

Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust director of nursing, Mary Sexton, said: 'We offer our sincere condolences to the family of Pamela Goddard on the loss of their mother.

'We are committed to providing high quality patient care and are sorry that on this occasion the family feel that that standard has not been met.

'We have received a formal complaint which we have responded to but are carrying out further investigations at the request of the family.'

Florence Weston - Told by staff to 'wet the bed'
Florence Weston was reduced to tears after being told by staff to wet her bed

Mrs Weston fractured her hip and waited days for her operation, which was repeatedly cancelled.

All the time, she was given nil by mouth, meaning she was left hungry and thirsty.

Staff at Russells Hall Hospital in the West Midlands told her to wet her bed if she needed the toilet.

Her son, Mike, said: 'She was also told that, because of being unable to use the toilet facilities through being immobile, she should wet the bed. This was highly embarrassing for her.

'Even worse, on one occasion, a night nurse told her off for doing this severely enough to reduce her to tears and cause her to ask me if she could go home.'
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Revealed: The cruelty suffered by 1m elderly NHS patients | Mail Online
 
Wow! Only 2 cases of medical malpractice that made the news?
Here are just a few links regarding errors and abuse in the American system:

Aide accused of assaulting nursing home patient

Abuse In The Nursing Home - CBS Evening News - CBS News

http://www.medicareadvocacy.org/Archives/ArchivedPages/SNF_SenateAgingCommitteeHrgsOnAbuse.
Elder Sexual Abuse in Nursing Homes
Nursing Home Abuse: Neglect, Physical and Even Sexual Abuse are the Harsh Realities Facing Todayâ??s Elderly
Healthcare worker charged with sexual abuse
Daily Herald | Report: Illinois nursing home allowed sexual abuse
Prevalence of sexual and physical abuse in patient...[Rev Esp Enferm Dig. 2009] - PubMed Result
Elsevier: Article Locator
The prevalence and nature of errors and near error...[Appl Nurs Res. 2004] - PubMed Result
Hospital Error - CBS News
Elsevier: Article Locator
Error Rate Greatest In Hospital Radiology - washingtonpost.com
Medical Errors Statistics, Demographic Statistics
Prevalence of Errors in a Pediatric Hospital Medication System: Implications for Error Proofing
Study Examines Nature and Prevalence of Errors in Patient Care; Cites Complex and Distracting Work Environment: University of Pennsylvania
Medication errors in a rural hospital | MedSurg Nursing | Find Articles at BNET

Looks like the NHS is doing remarkably well when compared to the U.S.
 
jillio said:
Wow! Only 2 cases of medical malpractice that made the news?
Here are just a few links regarding errors and abuse in the American system:

Aide accused of assaulting nursing home patient

Abuse In The Nursing Home - CBS Evening News - CBS News

http://www.medicareadvocacy.org/Archives/ArchivedPages/SNF_SenateAgingCommitteeHrgsOnAbuse.
Elder Sexual Abuse in Nursing Homes
Nursing Home Abuse: Neglect, Physical and Even Sexual Abuse are the Harsh Realities Facing Todayâ??s Elderly
Healthcare worker charged with sexual abuse
Daily Herald | Report: Illinois nursing home allowed sexual abuse
Prevalence of sexual and physical abuse in patient...[Rev Esp Enferm Dig. 2009] - PubMed Result
Elsevier: Article Locator
The prevalence and nature of errors and near error...[Appl Nurs Res. 2004] - PubMed Result
Hospital Error - CBS News
Elsevier: Article Locator
Error Rate Greatest In Hospital Radiology - washingtonpost.com
Medical Errors Statistics, Demographic Statistics
Prevalence of Errors in a Pediatric Hospital Medication System: Implications for Error Proofing
Study Examines Nature and Prevalence of Errors in Patient Care; Cites Complex and Distracting Work Environment: University of Pennsylvania
Medication errors in a rural hospital | MedSurg Nursing | Find Articles at BNET

Looks like the NHS is doing remarkably well when compared to the U.S.
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unless they don't let anyone report their negligence (keeping it as a secret) ... America will sue doctors which why there are so many reports. I was a Nurse Aide and they will monitor you like crazy. If you accidental tear someone's fragile skin (some people's skin are so fragile that if you rub it, it get torn. You will get in trouble for it too if you were the one who caused it), you get reported. I wonder how well do they monitor in NHS. I find it impossible to go a day without a single Nurse Aide or Nurses NOT to to be reported. So something is suspicious about NHS having 2 negligence. Do people really believe in perfection???
 
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Evidently some appear to believe in perfection. They quickly forget that our health care system is composed of doctors and nurses who are not just medical professionals, but human as well. Mistakes will happen. Not just here, but everywhere. It doesn't have anything to do with whether the system is nationalized or privatized. It is simply the fact that people providing medical care are not gods. They are humans.
 
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