Mistakes by hospital staff see sharp rise, official NHS figures reveal

Number of patients with deteriorating health receiving 'sub-optimal' care has more than doubles in two years, figures show

The number of cases in which NHS England recorded that a patient whose health was deteriorating received “sub-optimal” care has more than doubled in the past two years (Getty)

Serious mistakes by hospital staff that put vulnerable patients at risk have risen, official NHS statistics have revealed.

The number of cases in which NHS England recorded a patient whose health was deteriorating received “sub-optimal” care has more than doubled in the past two years, from 260 in 2013/14 to 588 in 2015/16.

In the same time frame, diagnostic incidents – either a delayed diagnosis or an NHS worker not acting on test results – rose from 654 to 923, while the number of surgical incidents more than doubled from 285 to 740.

The figures, obtained through a freedom of information request submitted by former Liberal Democrat health minister Norman Lamb, have highlighted that heightened strain on hospitals, such as staff shortages and cuts in the NHS, could be making staff more likely to make errors.

Mr Lamb said the “disturbing” figures showed that thousands of patients in need are being failed due “intense strain” being put on the NHS by inadequate funding.

“The Secretary of State [Jeremy Hunt] hjas stated objective to make the NHS the safest health system in the world, but what we see is serious incidents increasing quite significantly and that’s very disturbing,” he told The Independent.

“The one thing that’s completely clear is that the NHS is on its knees financially and it’s in an impossible position.

“Demand is rising and that amount of money the Government makes available is not nearly enough.

“The danger is that with the system under such impossible strain, we will compromise care and more serious incidents will occur.”

Mr Lamb is calling for a cross-party commission to be established on NHS funding that would properly engage with the public on future alternatives, including a possible new tax dedicated to health and social care.

“It’s a long time since the NHS was established and the needs of today are so different,” he said.

“We have to have a mature discussion with the public about how much we are prepared to pay to make sure we get care for our loved ones then they need it.”

The figures revealed there were 202 surgical errors and 83 cases of wrong-site surgery – in which surgeons operated on the wrong part of a patient’s body – during 2013/14, and they rose to 248 and 114 respectively a year later.

But after changing the way it collates data in May 2015 regarding incidents in which patient safety is endangered, NHS England says that 30 surgical errors and 19 wrong-site surgeries occurred in 2015/16, as did another 691 cases of a “surgical/invasive procedure incident”.

Dr Mike Durkin, National Director for Patient Safety at NHS Improvement, told The Independent: "Patients expect to get safe, high quality care from the NHS and I know NHS staff work extremely hard to make sure they do.

“Whenever incidents such as patient deaths do happen, we must make sure that patient care and systems are improved so that they don't happen again.

“The NHS is committed to improving patient safety and we can all help by contributing to an open and honest culture, where reporting and learning from mistakes can bring about real improvement for patients.

“We are working closely with providers across the country to not only share information about patient safety issues and best practice, but to make sure healthcare staff, nurses and doctors feel supported and have the right skills and leadership to further improve patient safety.”