A bit of politics and health today: this is from the Telegraph By Laura Donnelly: this is the article in full:
“Row as terminally ill woman given bed in hospital bathroom
“Row as terminally ill woman given bed in hospital bathroom
Health service managers engaged in bitter argument over who was to blame after a terminally-ill woman was forced to stay in a hospital bathroom.
Correspondence between the head of a Liverpool hospital and the chief executive of the local ambulance service reveals angry attempts to blame one another for failings which meant dementia patient Gladys Joynes was left in a bed wedged between a bath and a commode.
The makeshift accommodation at Royal Liverpool Hospital was so unsuitable that the 79-year-old, who is in the late stages of Alzheimer's disease, had to be taken off her drip when the machine's batteries ran out, as it could not be plugged in.
Her tray of food was placed on the floor, near an overflowing litter bin, her daughters said.
Royal Liverpool & Broadgreen Hospitals was issued with a written warning by local NHS officials over the incident, after a photograph of the accommodation was printed in the local newspaper.
In the correspondence, disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act, Tony Bell, the hospital chief executive, said the ambulance service was responsible for failing to respond to calls to transfer Mrs Joynes elsewhere.
He wrote: "Whilst conditions for the patient were safe, her care and accommodation was less than satisfactory, and the family took the issue to the Liverpool Echo, who subsequently printed a damning account, complete with pictures."
He tells John Burnside, head of the ambulance service, that he wishes to "formally register" the hospital trust's dissatisfaction with the service.
But Mr Burnside hit back, pointing out that the service was short of crews because they were wasting thousands of hours queuing outside A&E units.
In a response, written in February, Mr Burnside says: "It is clear that you feel both angry and wounded by the incident and the adverse publicity it attracted, especially at a time when your organisation and staff were working hard to meet exceptional demand."
He goes on to express dismay at the hospital's failure to acknowledge the demands being made on the ambulance service, including delays at A&E departments which have left the service in a "critical" situation.
In total, 4,000 hours were wasted by ambulances waiting outside A&E departments in the region during the month of December, the letter says.
Mrs Joynes' daughter Kathleen Huxley described the NHS bosses' attempts to pin the blame for the incident on each other as "pathetic".
The forensic psychologist said that all she wanted from the hospital was assurance that the situation would never be repeated.
She and her sister arrived at the hospital in January to find her mother, who had been admitted via Accident and Emergency because she was suffering pneumonia, in a bathroom that "looked more like a war zone".
Mrs Huxley said: "What worries me most is what would have happened if we had not arrived when we did.
"My mother was distressed, and confused and vulnerable, and it was appalling to see her being treated in this way."
The average salary of a Hospital CEO is about £150,000+ why was this terminally ill woman treated in this way?
The money meant for patients is obviously not going to the right people, “Lord” Darzi keeps promising better this and better that in the NHS, but it isn’t happening, they are spending £350 million on management consultants and patients are forced to stay in a toilet.
The CEO of the hospital should be sacked: no golden handshake, no pension and no reference, the board of the hospital should resign, and let people who actually care about patients take their place.
This is totally unacceptable, and heads must roll.
Angus
Angus Dei on all and sundry
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