Blood checks out of town
7:03am Fri Apr 02, 2010
The future of certain types of surgery performed at Newark Hospital has been called into question after the withdrawal of a vital blood-checking service.
A senior doctor told the Advertiser the removal of blood transfusion testing to King’s Mill Hospital, Sutton-in-Ashfield, could limit the complexity of surgery at Newark.
He said it could lead to Newark Hospital becoming a centre for minor operations at the expense of more complex surgery, such as knee and hip replacements.
Patients with possible complications, such as a risk of bleeding, are already transferred from Newark to King’s Mill for surgery as Newark has no intensive care facilities.
But the doctor, who did not want to be named, said the removal of the blood-checking service would call into question what remaining cases could be dealt with at Newark.
He said it was another example of how health bosses seemed to be slowly but surely moving services out of town.
Patients’ safety and quality of care are the reasons given for the decision by Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust, which runs both Newark and King’s Mill hospitals.
The trust says the move will reduce the risk of laboratory errors, with automated rather than manual testing, which is available at King’s Mill but not Newark.
Investigation of a recent laboratory “near miss” incident at Newark prompted the move to be brought forward from May as previously planned.
The doctor said the reason there was a safer clinical environment at King’s Mill was because services were being withdrawn from Newark.
He claimed the main reason for removing the blood-checking service was to save money.
The change, which staff at both hospitals were told about last week, means requests for patients’ blood samples to be cross-matched will no longer be processed at Newark.
The cross-matching ensures transfusions match a patient’s blood group.
Before major surgery a blood sample is taken and held in the hospital laboratory.
If a request for blood is made, for example due to unexpected bleeding during an operation, blood cross-matched with the patient’s sample can be supplied.
The doctor said the process, which took about 20 minutes at Newark, would be delayed while the sample was checked at King’s Mill instead.
A Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust spokesman said: “This project was started well over a year ago in line with the Department of Health’s pathology modernisation programme and has been progressed to meet national NHS quality guidelines.
“It is an essential move in the interests of patient safety, based on the latest evidence of best practice in the field of blood transfusion, which promotes the use of automated rather than manual techniques.
“Some specialist testing has never been undertaken at Newark.
“For a number of years the out-of-hours blood transfusion testing for the trust has been provided from the King’s Mill site.
“Some of the routine testing was transferred to King’s Mill last year.
“The remaining testing transferred in March and is being undertaken on high-tech equipment at King’s Mill to give all of our patients on both sites the advantage of the very best diagnostic services.
“The trust has planned the transfer of services very carefully to ensure that the change will not impact on surgery undertaken at Newark Hospital and will be ensuring adequate supplies of blood continue to be stored at the hospital, which can be used for any patient in an emergency.
“This has nothing to do with cost-cutting.
“The trust recently detected an incident from which no harm resulted to any patient.
“This was dealt with in a timely manner by completing the planned transfer of testing to enhance patient safety.
“Near-miss events afford early detection of possible system weaknesses and provide an early chance at correction, which is why we have decided to bring forward this planned transfer of service.”
By liverpoolnewark
More deceit by the SFHT ? Do they have no interest in the people of Newark beacause they are all Labour supporters ?
Imagine the janitor at your local school becoming headmaster that's how you rise through the ranks ! the level of ability of the SFHT senior hierarchy is pitifull !
Lies and more lies oh yeah I hear rumours a development near the Hospital that would have brought 60 jobs to the area was lost due to the SFHT interfering !
This organization is a joke and a corrosive influence on Newark !!
They destroy the Hospital and now jobs in Newark !
Do they have no shame ???
Report abuse