You wouldn’t think it is 2009, men and women are on the same hospital ward, sharing toilets and other facilities, with no privacy or dignity.
But it is and there are, the Dept of Health has issued a “plan” whether it is cunning or not remains to be seen.
From next year hospitals that treat patients in mixed sex accommodation will not be paid for their care, Health Secretary Alan Johnson announced today.
These tough new penalties are part of a package of measures being introduced in a new drive to virtually eliminate mixed sex accommodation and ensure it doesn't reappear.
The Department of Health's guidance to trusts is that men and women should not have to share sleeping accommodation or toilet facilities. From 2010/11 hospitals who fail to deliver this will face serious financial consequences - unless there is an overriding clinical justification.
The Health Secretary also announced that a £100million Privacy and Dignity Fund will be made available to support the NHS to make the necessary changes to virtually eliminate mixed sex accommodation.
The package of measures includes:
* Financial penalties for those hospitals where patients are treated in mixed sex accommodation - unless it can be clinically justified.
* A £100 million ring-fenced Privacy and Dignity Fund to help Trusts make swift adjustments to hospital accommodation.
* Improvement teams will be set up to go into hospitals that need support over the next six months.
* A greater focus on measuring and improving patient experience of mixed sex accommodation.
Single sex wards-good idea, bad penalties, “serious financial consequences”, so who will pay these “consequences”, will it be the senior management, no, it will be us, our money will be taken from the hospitals that fail to adhere to the rules, or in other words there will be less money available for treatment.
Speaking at the NHS Chairs conference in London, Alan Johnson said:
"People often feel at their most vulnerable when they are in hospital and being cared for in mixed sex accommodation can be deeply distressing. These measures will help to ensure that patients can be treated with the dignity and privacy they rightly expect.
"The message is clear - the NHS has taken great strides in reducing mixed sex accommodation over the last twelve years but now it must eliminate it altogether other than where clinically necessary. Hospitals who fail in their duty to protect patients' privacy will be financially penalised as we will not foot the bill for care that has taken place in mixed sex accommodation.
"I recognise that there are real, practical difficulties that some trusts need help to overcome and the new £100million fund will help provide the support they need to achieve this."
Chief Nursing Officer Christine Beasley said:
"Hospital staff must realise that being cared for in mixed sex accommodation can be very upsetting for patients particularly those that feel very vulnerable such as the elderly. Doctors and nurses have a clear duty to make sure that hospital patients are cared for in an environment which meets their clinical needs, and ensures that their privacy and dignity is maintained.
"We hope that by all but eliminating mixed sex accommodation we can dramatically improve patient experience".
The Government has been in power since 1997, they (or we) have poured hundreds of billions into the NHS to what effect?
The senior management are in the top 1% of earners, on average each CEO takes £150,000+ from the NHS, the medical directors take home more than the CEOs, often as much as £180,000+, the Nursing Director takes home £100,000+. HR Directors £100,000+, and because of this patients of both sexes have to share the same bathrooms and WCs.
So the NHS is going to throw another £100,000,000 into the pot for “privacy and dignity” which should be the norm for patients not the exception.
It isn’t rocket science to rearrange beds so that all wards are single sex, there may need to be new bathrooms built, but as most of the Trusts are now Foundation status they are allowed to use the “profit” made for improvements to the buildings.
So where is the six or seven £billion profit going, back to the NHS, they are taking it back to reduce spending then giving £100 million for “improvements”.
This Government and the NHS have had over eleven years to sort this out, they haven’t, the most important thing for patients apart from proper treatment of course is dignity and privacy.
The NHS should not have taken 11 years to address this basic need.
“The only kind of dignity which is genuine is that which is not diminished by the indifference of others.” Dag Hammarskjold
Angus
Angus Dei on all and sundry
NHS Behind the headlines
Angus Dei politico
But it is and there are, the Dept of Health has issued a “plan” whether it is cunning or not remains to be seen.
From next year hospitals that treat patients in mixed sex accommodation will not be paid for their care, Health Secretary Alan Johnson announced today.
These tough new penalties are part of a package of measures being introduced in a new drive to virtually eliminate mixed sex accommodation and ensure it doesn't reappear.
The Department of Health's guidance to trusts is that men and women should not have to share sleeping accommodation or toilet facilities. From 2010/11 hospitals who fail to deliver this will face serious financial consequences - unless there is an overriding clinical justification.
The Health Secretary also announced that a £100million Privacy and Dignity Fund will be made available to support the NHS to make the necessary changes to virtually eliminate mixed sex accommodation.
The package of measures includes:
* Financial penalties for those hospitals where patients are treated in mixed sex accommodation - unless it can be clinically justified.
* A £100 million ring-fenced Privacy and Dignity Fund to help Trusts make swift adjustments to hospital accommodation.
* Improvement teams will be set up to go into hospitals that need support over the next six months.
* A greater focus on measuring and improving patient experience of mixed sex accommodation.
Single sex wards-good idea, bad penalties, “serious financial consequences”, so who will pay these “consequences”, will it be the senior management, no, it will be us, our money will be taken from the hospitals that fail to adhere to the rules, or in other words there will be less money available for treatment.
Speaking at the NHS Chairs conference in London, Alan Johnson said:
"People often feel at their most vulnerable when they are in hospital and being cared for in mixed sex accommodation can be deeply distressing. These measures will help to ensure that patients can be treated with the dignity and privacy they rightly expect.
"The message is clear - the NHS has taken great strides in reducing mixed sex accommodation over the last twelve years but now it must eliminate it altogether other than where clinically necessary. Hospitals who fail in their duty to protect patients' privacy will be financially penalised as we will not foot the bill for care that has taken place in mixed sex accommodation.
"I recognise that there are real, practical difficulties that some trusts need help to overcome and the new £100million fund will help provide the support they need to achieve this."
Chief Nursing Officer Christine Beasley said:
"Hospital staff must realise that being cared for in mixed sex accommodation can be very upsetting for patients particularly those that feel very vulnerable such as the elderly. Doctors and nurses have a clear duty to make sure that hospital patients are cared for in an environment which meets their clinical needs, and ensures that their privacy and dignity is maintained.
"We hope that by all but eliminating mixed sex accommodation we can dramatically improve patient experience".
The Government has been in power since 1997, they (or we) have poured hundreds of billions into the NHS to what effect?
The senior management are in the top 1% of earners, on average each CEO takes £150,000+ from the NHS, the medical directors take home more than the CEOs, often as much as £180,000+, the Nursing Director takes home £100,000+. HR Directors £100,000+, and because of this patients of both sexes have to share the same bathrooms and WCs.
So the NHS is going to throw another £100,000,000 into the pot for “privacy and dignity” which should be the norm for patients not the exception.
It isn’t rocket science to rearrange beds so that all wards are single sex, there may need to be new bathrooms built, but as most of the Trusts are now Foundation status they are allowed to use the “profit” made for improvements to the buildings.
So where is the six or seven £billion profit going, back to the NHS, they are taking it back to reduce spending then giving £100 million for “improvements”.
This Government and the NHS have had over eleven years to sort this out, they haven’t, the most important thing for patients apart from proper treatment of course is dignity and privacy.
The NHS should not have taken 11 years to address this basic need.
“The only kind of dignity which is genuine is that which is not diminished by the indifference of others.” Dag Hammarskjold
Angus
Angus Dei on all and sundry
NHS Behind the headlines
Angus Dei politico
2 comments:
When I was a young doctor, Mixed sex wards didn't exist.
Now we have to spend £100m to turn the clock back!
Such is progress!
It really isn't rocket science is it?
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