'Article by Paul Lilley, Chief Executive'.
01/03/2007
I would like to invite you to think about what you have seen in or read about our hospitals recently.
Our NHS is a pact between us all as citizens in which we
- agree to be treated as equals, regardless of our financial means
- accept that we will be treated on the basis of clinical need, recognising that some patients are sicker than others
- pool our financial resources via taxation to fund the services we may need
- all wish to be treated with dignity and respect and to see services continually improve.
These are important principles. Any of us could one day be the patient arriving at a hospital when it is already full or arriving with a clinical condition which risks our life if we are not given priority over other patients. We are more than just consumers when we need the NHS.
I would like to hold up my hand and say,
- Yes, we have been busy in recent days and we are very sorry if this has caused any inconvenience. But we have had to cope with some of the uncertainties of life including unusually high numbers of emergency patients many of whom needed to stay in hospital for longer than usual, often with acute respiratory problems
- Yes, we were at full stretch and yes we have to take some tough decisions but we never closed our doors, and never will. Our staff cope admirably well and never turn away needy patients
- Yes, we do work closely with GPs and on occasions do need to ask them to share the emergency pressures by minimising hospital referrals
- Yes, we do give priority to urgent cases and sometimes delay treatment for one patient to allow the more pressing clinical needs of another to be met. We regret the delays but are clear that patient safety must come first
- Yes, we do occasionally need to move a less dependent patient from one bed to another at an inconvenient time. We try not to, we always explain and apologise when we do need to move patients but we must ensure that the sickest patients are given the best chance to recover by placing them in the appropriate hospital location
- Yes, some patients do bleed in hospital, not least in A&E and indeed it is quite common after accidents. Any spillages are cleaned as soon as they are spotted or reported to staff but it is exceptionally rare to acquire an infection from a blood spillage and is only a risk albeit a minimal one for other patients with open wounds
- Yes, we have admitted fewer patients to hospital beds this year and people spend less time in hospital than in the past. In turn that has enabled us to close beds and employ fewer staff. Like all organisations, and all individuals, we have to live within our means, but we never forget that patient safety is our top priority
- Yes, we do vary our capacity in response to increased demand and as I write we have 60 extra beds temporarily opened
- Yes, we would like to have more resources of all kinds so it is easier to cope with peaks of demand but this would mean running for most of the time with expensive unused capacity. We doubt if that is affordable without cutting other public services or increasing taxes. Our ability to reduce routine clinical activity in favour of emergency patients is a great strength, not a weakness.
Each week more than 2,000 patients are admitted to one of our beds and ten times as many people are seen in A&E, or outpatients or for tests. We hope that all have a good experience and we strive constantly to improve performance in every area. We do not always get everything right but when we do not it is not for want of trying.
I guess I am biased but I believe that we are fortunate in Gloucestershire to have good hospitals with skilled and committed staff. When the pressure is on, as it has been in recent days, these people are at their best. The issues set out above can be seen, if we wish to be positive, as signs of success not failure.
Thank you for reading this. We are far from perfect but the hospital staff have coped admirably with an exceptional peak of demand in recent days. I thank them on your behalf.
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