Shaun Whitmore/BBCBy Lauren Woodhead, Paul Bradshaw & Alix HattenstoneBBC Local & BBC Shared Data UnitDisrepair in NHS buildings led to thousands of potentially-harmful incidents last year including critically-ill patients being moved when rainfall came through the ceiling.Sewage leaks, floods and failing equipment also featured in incident records obtained by the BBC under the Freedom of Information Act.Health chiefs called on the government to nearly double its capital spending.The government said “significant sums” had been invested to modernise the NHS.According to NHS data, the care of more than 2,600 acute hospital patients was disrupted last year by estates and infrastructure failure.The BBC asked 210 hospital trusts for examples, and a total of 86 trusts provided a response.Incidents included:Patients awaiting dialysis were sent home because of water supply issuesGreen algae growth in a hydrotherapy poolPower lost in an operating theatreSewage leaked into a waiting area for ophthalmologyParts of a ceiling collapsed in a clinical areaAn operating theatre reached 29C because of a broken air conditioning unitThe NHS Confederation, which represents trusts, has published a report setting out what health care leaders want the next government to prioritise. It has called on the government to increase capital spending on the health service from £7.7bn to £14.1bn. Matthew Taylor, its chief executive, said: “Put simply, a lack of capital funding can leave patients at risk.”Official data shows the total repairs backlog for the NHS was £11.6bn, a rise of 13.6% on the previous year.’A rat ran out’RebeccaRebecca, 28, and her six-year-old daughter Cleo often have to go to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn. Cleo’s hypoglycaemia – a condition related to low blood sugar – means she sometimes has to stay overnight. Part of the Norfolk site was built using Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC), a material which forced 100 schools to close last year.The hospital previously had to close operating theatres because of concerns the ceiling could collapse. All theatres are now back open and the RAAC work is complete.But Rebecca said staying in the children’s ward during the construction was worrying.”I want to put my whole trust in the hospital,” Rebecca said. “But when I’m in the children’s ward and there’s a massive beam that’s holding the roof up, it does make me worry. “That’s something you don’t want to worry about when you’re trying to worry about your child’s health.” RebeccaBut the roof was not Rebecca’s only concern. She said that in January 2023, she saw sewage leaking on hospital grounds. “You’ve got a sterile area and sewage coming out of a manhole cover,” she said. “There was building equipment leant up against the hospital wall and a rat ran out from under the building.”A trust spokesman said it worked immediately to clear the blockage.Director of estates and facilities Paul Brooks said his team was doing its utmost to keep disruption to a minimum.He said: “We appreciate it can be disconcerting for our patients and visitors when they see building work taking place.”Seriously-ill patients movedLaura – not her real name – works for Colchester Hospital, part of East Suffolk North Essex NHS Trust. She told the BBC heavy rain caused part of the ceiling on a critical care ward to swell and tiles to bulge.Laura said no one was hurt, but her colleagues had to move patients to a neighbouring part of the hospital while a clean-up was undertaken. “We’re talking patients on life support, multi-organ failure – and they all had to be moved over to the other side of the unit,” she said. Harlow: Urgent funding call to replace sewage leak hospitalPropped-up hospitals in the East of England to be rebuilt by 2030Inside the hospital deemed ‘not fit for purpose’Laura said it was the second time rainfall had come through the ceiling on the ward. She said black aspergillus mould was found, which can cause breathing difficulties. Nick Sammons, director of estates and facilities at East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust, said keeping patients safe was the trust’s “number one priority”. He said: “We took the highest level of precautions and actions possible. This included safely moving patients out of the aff …
Article Attribution | Read More at Article Source
[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnShaun Whitmore/BBCBy Lauren Woodhead, Paul Bradshaw & Alix HattenstoneBBC Local & BBC Shared Data UnitDisrepair in NHS buildings led to thousands of potentially-harmful incidents last year including critically-ill patients being moved when rainfall came through the ceiling.Sewage leaks, floods and failing equipment also featured in incident records obtained by the BBC under the Freedom of Information Act.Health chiefs called on the government to nearly double its capital spending.The government said “significant sums” had been invested to modernise the NHS.According to NHS data, the care of more than 2,600 acute hospital patients was disrupted last year by estates and infrastructure failure.The BBC asked 210 hospital trusts for examples, and a total of 86 trusts provided a response.Incidents included:Patients awaiting dialysis were sent home because of water supply issuesGreen algae growth in a hydrotherapy poolPower lost in an operating theatreSewage leaked into a waiting area for ophthalmologyParts of a ceiling collapsed in a clinical areaAn operating theatre reached 29C because of a broken air conditioning unitThe NHS Confederation, which represents trusts, has published a report setting out what health care leaders want the next government to prioritise. It has called on the government to increase capital spending on the health service from £7.7bn to £14.1bn. Matthew Taylor, its chief executive, said: “Put simply, a lack of capital funding can leave patients at risk.”Official data shows the total repairs backlog for the NHS was £11.6bn, a rise of 13.6% on the previous year.’A rat ran out’RebeccaRebecca, 28, and her six-year-old daughter Cleo often have to go to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn. Cleo’s hypoglycaemia – a condition related to low blood sugar – means she sometimes has to stay overnight. Part of the Norfolk site was built using Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC), a material which forced 100 schools to close last year.The hospital previously had to close operating theatres because of concerns the ceiling could collapse. All theatres are now back open and the RAAC work is complete.But Rebecca said staying in the children’s ward during the construction was worrying.”I want to put my whole trust in the hospital,” Rebecca said. “But when I’m in the children’s ward and there’s a massive beam that’s holding the roof up, it does make me worry. “That’s something you don’t want to worry about when you’re trying to worry about your child’s health.” RebeccaBut the roof was not Rebecca’s only concern. She said that in January 2023, she saw sewage leaking on hospital grounds. “You’ve got a sterile area and sewage coming out of a manhole cover,” she said. “There was building equipment leant up against the hospital wall and a rat ran out from under the building.”A trust spokesman said it worked immediately to clear the blockage.Director of estates and facilities Paul Brooks said his team was doing its utmost to keep disruption to a minimum.He said: “We appreciate it can be disconcerting for our patients and visitors when they see building work taking place.”Seriously-ill patients movedLaura – not her real name – works for Colchester Hospital, part of East Suffolk North Essex NHS Trust. She told the BBC heavy rain caused part of the ceiling on a critical care ward to swell and tiles to bulge.Laura said no one was hurt, but her colleagues had to move patients to a neighbouring part of the hospital while a clean-up was undertaken. “We’re talking patients on life support, multi-organ failure – and they all had to be moved over to the other side of the unit,” she said. Harlow: Urgent funding call to replace sewage leak hospitalPropped-up hospitals in the East of England to be rebuilt by 2030Inside the hospital deemed ‘not fit for purpose’Laura said it was the second time rainfall had come through the ceiling on the ward. She said black aspergillus mould was found, which can cause breathing difficulties. Nick Sammons, director of estates and facilities at East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust, said keeping patients safe was the trust’s “number one priority”. He said: “We took the highest level of precautions and actions possible. This included safely moving patients out of the aff …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
