More than 5,700 patients died or suffered serious harm as a result of staff errors in the NHS over a six-month period, figures showed today.
Figures from the National Patient Safety Agency showed that 459,500 patient safety incidents and near misses occurred in England between last October and March.
This is a 12 per cent increase on the previous six months but the agency, which collects and monitors safety data in the NHS, said that better reporting was fuelling the rise.
Uh, ok.
Martin Fletcher, the agency’s chief executive, added: “More reports do not mean more risks to patients. Indeed, quite the reverse. These data are sound evidence of an improving reporting culture across the NHS. Frontline staff are more likely than ever to raise safety concerns much more openly.”
Ok, if this jump is from 'improved reporting', what are the real numbers?
From another article,
Up to one in 50 patients in hospital is being treated for problems caused by previous NHS care, official figures show today.
A study by the the NHS Information Centre found that patients in England were treated for complications resulting from treatment on 326,000 occasions over a 12-month period — equivalent to two per cent of all hospital admissions.
The figures include cases of botched surgery, excessive bleeding or serious side-effects to medicines or therapies given to help patients.
'One in 50' doesn't sound too bad, but then you get to this:
A spokesman for the NHS Information Centre said: “These figures do not include people with minor complications that could have been dealt with outside hospital. It only deals with serious complications where patients had to be re-admitted to hospital as a consequence of earlier treatment.
So this only counts 'serious complications'. Which could mean the actual number is WAY higher than 'up to 1 in 50'.
Yep, we'd just LOOOOVE having our own National Health Service, wouldn't we?
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