Borderers will no doubt be shocked at the damning report on infection control compiled by the Health Environment Inspectorate following a visit to the Borders General Hospital earlier this year.
Among the points raised by the inspectors were that there was no consideration of risk for patients, staff and visitors in Ward 8 and there was a consistent lack of attention to cleaning floor edgings and corners.
Although the inspectors reported that the overall perception of cleanliness in the hospital was good, bosses were told to improve cleaning methods.
A high level of cleanliness in a hospital should be a given, no excuses. However, ensuring a public hospital maintains that, day in, day out, is a massive undertaking for cleaning and nursing staff, particularly if vacancies are not being filled because of budget contraints.
So, perhaps some of the questions that need to be asked are: Does the BGH employ enough staff to carry out the necessary work? Are nurses given the training and support they need to ensure guidelines are followed? It would seem not.
Senior ward staff were reported to have said they are not supported by top hospital staff. BGH managers have put a comprehensive action plan in place to ensure that the recommendations in the report are acted on immediately, but any improvements are likely to suffer if staffing levels are too low to realistically sustain them.
As managers, they have a duty of care for staff as well as patients, and it is not difficult to see that if you get the first one right, the second will follow.
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Sandy, Sorry, I can't go along with the cash/money shortage explanation of the shortcomings at BGH. The real problem with hospitals (not just NHS) is that, unlike most businesses depending on customer contact, hospital do not get critical feedback from their patients. Once admitted, most patients relapse into a state of infantile subservience, even apathy. They are now 'victims' and have to behave themselves, or else! Neither they, nor their relatives or visitors dare show their heads above the parapet lest, they think, they will be punished. Patients are very vulnerable indeed. 'White Coat Syndrome' - elevated pulse rate and blood pressure is so well known that experienced doctors pay little attention to these reading in the clinical situation - they indicate FEAR! Real naked fear for their lives! Often the only time many have felt real fear and the rational strategy is to comply with whatever the world throws at them.
ReplyDeleteDeprive any organisation of adequate negative feedback and it runs amuck. Its no ones fault - its just the way things are. The results are all too obvious - cleaners don't clean properly. nurses don't nurse properly, clinicians make careless mistakes and managers know but don't want to know.
I cannot see how to dispel the fear, but there must be ways of policing the system - the Matron (old-fashioned of course!) was thought to be the all-seeing eye or the Infection Control Nurse, specialised to look for trouble but some independent monitor is needed to be on site 24/7 simply to watch what is happening and get malpractices corrected - and no prior notice of inspections!