Wythenshawe Hospital has developed a new scheme which will mean that patients can be seen by consultants seven days a week.
It may come as a surprise to some people, but many hospitals currently have low levels of senior staff working at weekends and on bank holidays, with consultants only available on call.
The new plans have been announced following a report “Future Hospital: Caring for Medical Patients”, run by the Royal College of Physicians. One of the main recommendations made by this report suggested that hospitals should operate a seven day service.
Several studies have revealed higher death rates and poorer outcomes for patients who are admitted to hospital at the weekend, compared with those admitted during the week. Wythenshawe Hospital hopes that their ‘every ward, every day’ scheme will help to improve the care that patients receive and result in better outcomes for patients.
Consultants at Wythenshawe Hospital will now be available 7am – 10pm, seven days a week, and there are plans to reorganise the junior medical staff rota. They have also taken on additional members of staff including acute physicians, A&E staff and specialist discharge nurses.
The new scheme should also help to free-up bed space, as patients will now be able to be discharged at the weekend, rather than enduring longer than necessary hospital stays.
This all comes as good news for patients and their families as it is hoped that less patients will have negative experiences, particularly at the weekend and on bank holidays when they need quality care just as much as patients admitted during the week.
What do you make of the new plans? Let us know if you have experienced poor hospital care due to a lack of senior staff at the weekend.
By Ruth Eardley, graduate paralegal in the Clinical Negligence department
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