Stafford Hospital - What a car crash

[United57]

I found this article http://www.nursingtimes.net/target-chasing-turned-nurse-against-nurse/5037272.article..

To me the intersting parts were

1. Some senior trust managers appeared happy to replace skilled caregivers with a largely untrained workforce, believing that this would have no effect on care.

2. (Whisleblowing nurse) told the inquiry that she had worked as a staff nurse in accident and emergency at Mid Staffs hospital between 2004 and 2008. The atmosphere was one of fear; there was a lack of professional leadership, and a chronic shortage of staff and basic equipment. Two senior sisters ruled with a heavy hand, regularly using physical threats and verbal abuse to intimidate staff.

Both of this was highlighted in Francis Enquiry.

Cure NHS was correct to try and bring this to peoples attention. Their work in that sense was very admirable snd cannot be denied. Julie Bailey and Cure NHS should be given credit for that. Some may argue they should refocus their efforts for all I know they may have. I did not like her comment on the TV and felt it was not appropriate and to that end I will write to Cure NHS and put my view.

My own personal view is we should be rallying around and supporting the hospital because if we don't we won't have one.

Some observations

1. Stafford hospital seems to be in the Daily Mail a lot
2. The Conservatives seem to have taken a step back as they are now the party in control
3. The number of ambulance chasing firms opening up in Stafford at a time when other shops/pubs/restaurants are closing

 

[John Marwood]

Dear Julie Bailey

Thank you

Thank you for persisting, thank you for challenging bad practices and attitudes both at hospital level, regional level, and national level.

Some people cannot except that authority at all levels can get it wrong, continually. Some people will always look for an easy scapegoat, the number of these people is likely to surprise and disappoint you

Thank you Julie Bailey and your friends for working so hard under so much pressure

 

[Mr X]

Dear Julie Bailey

Thank you

Thank you for persisting, thank you for challenging bad practices and attitudes both at hospital level, regional level, and national level.

Thank you also for ignoring those who work so hard in our hospitals caring for the sick, have never set a foot wrong and do not deserve to have been given such a poor reputation as a result of your generalisations.

Thank you for causing such damage to the reputation of the hospital, that new management are struggling to find suitable care staff and have had to close A&E a part-time basis. Your relentless campaigning has undoubtedly accelerated the failure of some areas of the hospital - for this we applaud you.

Please do not feel responsible for the failure of the hospital in any way - for it was not your doing. However, please feel responsible for the damage you have caused to the reputation and to the hospital staff - your efforts have been outstanding.

Thank you Julie Bailey and your friends for working so hard under so much pressure. It is only fair that you should have caused so many other innocent people to work under so much pressure also.

Yours,
X

---

@JM, I can't believe my opinion has caused you to write so many comprehensible posts - I haven't seen you write anything sensible for a long time!

 

[Withnail]

I found this article http://www.nursingtimes.net/target-chasing-turned-nurse-against-nurse/5037272.article..

Link was dead, but his one worked for me

http://www.nursingtimes.net/target-chasing-turned-nurse-against-nurse/5037272.article

Helene was appalled at the standards of treatment and care, especially where older people were concerned, and at the number of patients who died needlessly in undignified circumstances. Patients endured “unimaginable” suffering and were left “sobbing and humiliated” by staff. Fabricating waiting times was common practice and, when Ms Donnelly refused to falsify records, she was threatened by her managers. Her workload increased and she was expected to stay long after her shift was finished. She became so frightened as a result of threats of physical harm that her husband or her father would collect her after work.

Codes of practice, professional values and ethical standards were all sacrificed, as long as the trust did not incur financial penalties for missing targets. Making a formal complaint to managers or supervisors was futile - it was they who were the problem.

My own personal view is we should be rallying around and supporting the hospital because if we don't we won't have one.

The time for remorse is over - where have i heard that before?

I do agree with you, but i also understand why people more directly affected have more difficulty 'letting go'.

 

[United57]

I do agree with you, but i also understand why people more directly affected have more difficulty 'letting go'.

I can understand that and I cannot imagine their pain and anguish over this horrid situation.

I also believe there are many who have a view of Stafford Hospital without any experience. I tried to show through information freely available that all is not as bad as it was. Its actually doing better than a lot of people think.

 

[db]

Just thinking about this some more, why is a petition being held to keep A & E open if they don't have or cannot find the qualified staff to run it?

If they were to keep the place open and a Junior Doctor was in charge and made an incorrect decision, it would be all over the media again.

They need to attract staff, how they go about doing that, I have no idea!

A valid and honest appraisal

indeed.. i have spent a lot of time at stafford hospital recently, in 3 different inpatient wards, 1 day ward, and numerous outpatient appointments, and so have had a lot of chats with a lot of different staff from a lot of different departments.. the vast majority share the sentiments expressed above - the last thing they want, like any sensible person, is for A&E to close, but they honestly feel that the decision to close it had to be made as there was a genuine, significant chance that people would attend and there would not be enough staff to help them, potentially resulting in unnecessary deaths..

a closed A&E is bad.. an open A&E with people dying is worse.. just as long as they are going to fulfil their promise of only closing it for 3 months while they populate it with more staff, so they can attempt to get it back on track..

alas, i fear all the hyperbole and scapegoating (not helped by julie bailey's campaign of bitterness) has pushed the hospital beyond the point of no return

Its actually doing better than a lot of people think.

exactly.. see my previous post about how other hospitals are doing just a "badly", or worse even..

 

[Gramaisc]

Car crash? You say?

Bloody hell. I've just ferried an old codger up there for a hearing test and the queue for the car park was out onto the Weston Road. The car -parks were all 'FULL'. There were buses, including a double-decker, stuck all over the place. I eventually got to the top of the hill, only to find that the main entrance was blocked off and so I had to dump the 95-year-old in the bus-stop and let him fend for himself, whilst I tried to dump the car. By the merest of flukes, I did eventually find a space, and then managed to track him down. It had eased a bit by the time we got back out, but it was still a bit mad.

I would suggest that, had a series of blood-pressure readings been taken, then the results would have been somewhat above the national average.

 

[United57]

Car crash? You say?

Bloody hell. I've just ferried an old codger up there for a hearing test and the queue for the car park was out onto the Weston Road. The car -parks were all 'FULL'. .

Popular place despite what some say.

 

[gilbert grape]

I didn't want to go to negative press about the Hospital, asnumerous members of my family have had good, as well as indifferent, service/care at the place as in patients and outpatients over quite a period.
However, the last few days leave quite a different taste in the mouth.

At the weekend the very sick Son of a friend was in and was sick. He was left for over two hours before being tended to and cleaned.
Today, my Brother's Mother-in-law was taken in after having a heart attack. While my Sister-in-law waited and waited, thinking she would get a call to go in to see her Mum, a cleaner asked if she was OK as she'd been there a while? It turned out her Mum had just been transferred to North Staffs and she hadn't been told!

How can we defend the operations of the place if the basics can't be carried out? I have to go there at least 4 times a year and my Dad is in the latter stages of Cancer so how confident am I supposed to feel?
Having also had Diabetes for over 32 years I am aware things won't get easier personally, so I have to keep everything crossed that the whole mess is sorted as quickly as possible!

 

[Nicedave]

Stafford Hospital is closed to all but life threatening emergencies brought in by Ambulance for the next couple of hours. Ambulances are being diverted to BURTON

 

[Nicedave]

Divert now off

 

[Lucy]

Was there a major RTA somewhere? They normally divert for a good reason.

 

[db]

Was there a major RTA somewhere? They normally divert for a good reason.

probably just that they couldn't take any more people in! they have a scale of 1 to 4, where 1 is "ok" and 4 is "close A&E as we cannot accommodate anyone else" - last thursday i had to cancel an appointment as they were at level 3, so maybe they briefly went into 4?

just speculation, i have no idea of the real reason btw.. and vis a vis my missed appointment, they really pulled out all the stops to make sure i got in the following day, and the care and attention i got was great

 

[Nicedave]

There was no large accident no RTC'S Just normal run of the mill stuff

 

[John Marwood]

The trust today said the longer waits were due to patients with mental health problems waiting to be transferred to specialist units.

Burton is a hell of a slow journey by van

 

[Gramaisc]

Twat maybe visits here, ,what à total waste of space, ... f#cl off lefroy! ......

Can second that?

Surely someone on hear voted for him, perhaps they might like tell us just what he's up to.......

As I've said before, I most certainly didn't vote for him, but..

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-stoke-staffordshire-15761947 - a debate has been proposed.

 

[70-plus]

Lefroy is going to speak in Parliament on this issue! People were queuing to sign a petition in Market square to save the A&E department. They must feel very strongly about keeping an A&E in Stafford. I heard many cursing Julie Bayley who does not seem to be the "saint" the press once thought she was.

 

[John Marwood]

Lefroy is going to speak in Parliament on this issue! People were queuing to sign a petition in Market square to save the A&E department. They must feel very strongly about keeping an A&E in Stafford. I heard many cursing Julie Bayley who does not seem to be the "saint" the press once thought she was.

If people only take an interest in matters when it seems it may effect themselves personally at a given point then they deserve to stay ignorant and out of touch and will 'enjoy' the results of their apathy together

If people cannot be bothered to look into matters that may concern themselves, their neighbours, their friends and colleagues at some distant point in the future, if they cannot be bothered to look deeper than a short sighted or bias press then they will regret their inactions with considerable pain,discomfort and trauma - and then expect the press and MP's to come a running - just for them

Bleating now is just too chuffinglate

Toochuffinglate

Toochuffingignorant and toochuffinglate

Yeh but I havent got time to protest or lobby but did you see strictly and record Xfactor or watch Xfactor and record Strictly

Bloody protestors! Its all their fault! Should have left it as it was ! ShitBloodDeath and look the other way

nowt against yow tho 70 plus

 

[flossietoo]

I can see why people are angry about the hospital. I don't understand why that anger would be directed towards Julie Bayley, though. As far as I know, she tried raising the alarm through conventional channels and got nowhere. So she turned campaigner. In her position, having lost a loved one in particularly unpleasant circumstances, I just hope I would have had some of her resilience and courage.
There are, undoubtedly, some good people doing wonderful work at Stafford Hospital - several of my friends among them. But I don't think there can be much doubt that there were problems. The root cause of those problems might be government obsession with target-setting, bad management, maybe even the result of re-defining nursing roles and reducing staffing levels. It certainly isn't Julie Bayley.

 

[United57]

I can see why people are angry about the hospital. I don't understand why that anger would be directed towards Julie Bayley, though. As far as I know, she tried raising the alarm through conventional channels and got nowhere. So she turned campaigner. In her position, having lost a loved one in particularly unpleasant circumstances, I just hope I would have had some of her resilience and courage.
There are, undoubtedly, some good people doing wonderful work at Stafford Hospital - several of my friends among them. But I don't think there can be much doubt that there were problems. The root cause of those problems might be government obsession with target-setting, bad management, maybe even the result of re-defining nursing roles and reducing staffing levels. It certainly isn't Julie Bayley.

It is a difficult one in that she obviously campaigned to try and get some changes. In that she was evidently successful. Probably even helped the Conservatives to win locally. The issue now is where does the campaign go.

I tried to show that the hospital is not as bad as people believe. There is a perception that it is worse than it is. Should Cure not be supporting the hospital.

The issue I have was what she said on TV about the closure of AE. A lot of other people people feel the same. A lot fear we may never have an AE unit again.