Deceased patient left for hours before being found in hospital
- Jul 6, 2016
- EmmaArnold
A busy A&E department was reviewed by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) which found a patient had laid dead for up to four-and-a-half hours before being spotted by staff.
North Middlesex University Hospital's emergency services were rated 'inadequate' and was revealed to have a number of other errors.
Nurses at the hospital were failing to make hourly rounds which meant the patient was not found as soon as they should have been.
The nurse to patient ratio, which should be 1:4, was recorded as being 1:10 and 20 patients were found to be treated in the corridors.
Hannah Bottomley, clinical negligence solicitor at PotterReesDolan, said:
CQC inspections often turn up some unusual and worrying facts. The report overall was described as “damning” and identified several areas which required improvement however it is the lack of dignity and respect which I personally find so horrifying.
I can only imagine the distress of the family of the patient who died in the circumstances and my thoughts go out to them, losing a loved one is distressing at the best of times but to have your loved treated in such a manner must only make things feel worse. I hope that the improvements being implemented in the wake of the CQC inspection and report ensure that such dreadful events do not occur again and all patients are treated with the care, respect and dignity that they deserve.
The CQC review, which took place in April and May, also found there was a delay in patients being transferred from trolleys to beds.
After concerns into the standard of care were reported to the CQC, the issues were looked into with the inspection of the emergency department and two other medical wards.
The hospital has apologised to patients and have recruited five additional doctors to the A&E department in a bid to ease the pressure.