Basic hospital mistakes in England cost the NHS
up to £2.5bn a year, admits Health Minister.
NHS could afford to hire more nurses, if errors were cut out, according to Health Minister Jeremy Hunt’s calculations. During a speech in Birmingham he admitted costs were incurred through problems like medication errors, avoidable infections after surgery, pressure sores, etc.
And last year the NHS spent £1.3bn on pay-outs on litigation,countering poor care, etc., and Andrew Lansley’s massive re-organisation of the NHS is estimated to have cost about £10billion. Now there is widespread recognition that this was a massive waste, for no overall benefit – just extended waiting lists, more people forced to go privately, 6 months wait for a pain clinic appointment and so on.
A spokesman for the Royal College of Nursing said mistakes were the result of understaffed wards. The nurses were doing an excellent job, but no-one listened to them and what was needed. Now there are even less to point out what needs to be done. Continue reading