‘National emergency’ declared as NHS patients ‘treated in cupboards and car parks’ and ‘dying in hospital corridors’

PATIENTS are being “treated in closets and parking lots” and “dying in hospital corridors,” nurses warned

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has declared a state of “national emergency” in the NHS due to a rise in “completely inadequate” patient care.

He revealed that patients are running out of access to oxygen and undergoing intimate examinations in crowded and unsuitable areas.

Some are regularly treated in chairs in hallways for long periods periods of time, sometimes days, revealed the RCN.

A survey of almost 11,000 frontline nursing staff across the UK shows the practice has become widespread, the union said.

When asked about their most recent shift, nearly two in five reported providing care in an inappropriate area, such as a hallway.

And nearly seven in ten said care provided in public compromised patients’ privacy and dignity.

The RCN is now calling for mandatory reporting of patients treated in corridors, to show the extent of hospital overcrowding.

As the union’s annual conference begins in Newport, South Wales, acting general secretary Professor Nicola Ranger will use her keynote address to declare a national emergency over the research findings.

Prof Ranger will tell the conference’s 3,000 delegates that the situation is a “tragedy” for the nursing profession.

“Our once world-leading services treat patients in parking lots and store closets.

“Elderly people languish in chairs for hours on end and patients die in the hallways.

“The horror of this situation cannot be underestimated. It is a national patient safety emergency and today we are sounding the alarm.

“This is about honesty and responsibility. Care provided in front of a fire escape is not care. Signing ‘Do Not Resuscitate’ orders in a hallway is not care.

“Receiving a cancer diagnosis in a public area is not care. It’s a nightmare for everyone involved.

“We need to report this as a nursing team, and health leaders and ministers need to take responsibility.”

‘HORRIBLE’

A nurse, working in a hospital in Englandsaid: “Patients stay dirty for long periods because there is nowhere to change them.

“I witnessed DNACPR (do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation) decisions being signed in the hallway.

“I’ve had to move a deceased patient into a hallway to generate resuscitation capability. It’s horrible.”

Nursing staff revealed that hallway care has become the norm in almost every corner of a typical hospital environment.

Prof Ranger will say: “Treating patients in corridors used to be an exceptional circumstance. It is now a regular occurrence and a symptom of a system in crisis.

You wouldn’t treat a dog that way

Frontline nurse

“We are right to be angry that this once-abnormal practice has become normalized.”

The team describes patients receiving cancer diagnoses and intimate exams in public areas.

A nurse said, “You wouldn’t treat a dog like that.”

Another was told to “let the patient roam” because there was not enough space in the ward.

Another nurse said that a patient with dementia spent hours in a hallway without oxygen.

They said: “When I arrived she was in a wheelchair in a hallway with her daughter. She was extremely agitated, crying and confused.

“This care environment for any patient, let alone dementia, was completely inappropriate.”

‘A SYSTEM IN CRISIS’

The new report states that corridor care is “a symptom of a system in crisis”, with demand for patients in all settings – from primary care to community and social care – outstripping labor supply .

The result is that patients are unable to access healthcare close to their homes and are instead forced to rely on hospitals.

Saffron Cordery, executive vice-chairman of NHS Providers, said: “These findings reflect the serious pressures facing the NHS, including high demand, lack of bed capacity and delayed hospital discharge.

“No trusted leader wants to treat patients in hallways, storage closets or other non-clinical areas as this compromises quality of care, patient privacy and dignity.

“The deeply worrying experiences shared by frontline nurses highlight the urgent need for more strategic investment and planning.

“It is vital next government adequately addresses the root causes of hospital overcrowding.

“Improving social care and community services is also key to ensuring patients can be discharged safely and quickly, freeing up hospital beds for those most in need.”

This comes after reports that junior doctors intend to go on strike just days before the General Election, downing tools for five days, from June 27 to July 2.

The British Medical Association (BMA) said it had “no choice” after ministers “refused to meet pay demands”.

Health Secretary Victoria Atkins said the choice of dates was a “highly cynical tactic”.