‘Radical reinvention of hospitals required’ as challenges mount

A RADICAL reinvention of hospitals is needed to cope with rising admissions and more older patients with increasingly complex needs, according to a new report.
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Patients should not have to move beds or wards unless medically necessary and should have the same access to care at weekends as on week days, a commission set up by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) said.

The recommendations are among 50 made by the Future Hospitals Commission, a number of which are based on existing good practice seen at trusts including Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

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Commission chairman Sir Michael Rawlins said: “This report has major implications for the clinical practice of physicians, the training of future generations of physicians, research and, most importantly of all, for patients.

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“Its implementation will be a challenge for us all – but implement it we must. Our present and future patients will expect – indeed demand – no less.”

Patients – particularly older, vulnerable ones – should undergo a thorough assessment as soon as possible on arrival, the report also recommends, with examples of existing good practice including the frailty unit at Sheffield’s Northern General Hospital.

The specialist medical assessment unit is credited with reducing geriatric mortality rates by 16 per cent as well as freeing up bed space since it opened last May.

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The report also envisions a new organisational structure consisting of a medical division, acute care hub and clinical co-ordination centre bringing together disparate parts of hospital care, with new roles including a chief of medicine.

Welcoming the “bold and refreshing” proposals, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said: “I’m pleased many of the proposals in this important report mirror and build on steps we’re already taking to drive up standards across the NHS, including prioritising and measuring patient experience and seven-day access to services.”

Death rates higher than US: Page 6; Comment: Page 12.