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[Apparelyzed]

Hospital beds call after Peer’s death

By Elizabeth Choppin


The death of a popular disabled peer has raised new concerns about a shortage of specialist hospital beds for people with spinal cord injuries.

Baroness (Davina) Darcy de Knayth died on 24 February, after being turned away from The National Spinal Injuries Centre (NSIC) at Stoke Mandeville Hospital.

The Spinal Injuries Association (SIA) said there were only 400 specialist beds across the UK, so people with spinal cord injuries were frequently being turned away.

Baroness Darcy de Knayth was believed to have asked to be admitted to Stoke Mandeville when she became ill, but was turned away and later admitted to Wexham Park Hospital in nearby Slough. She died two days later.

Baroness Masham of Ilton, who is president of the SIA, told the House of Lords that Stoke Mandeville, where the Baroness had previously been treated, was unable to admit her "for some reason yet to be explained".

She added: "As president of the Spinal Injuries Association, I will be asking the government to review the very inadequate facilities for the 6,000 people living with the results of spinal injuries, especially in the south of England."

She also said that Wexham Park Hospital "unfortunately was not equipped to deal with a seriously ill person with spinal injuries".

A spokesman for Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Stoke Mandeville, said: "We would welcome the opportunity to meet with Baroness Masham in order for us to respond to her concerns directly."

He said the trust was "disappointed" to hear of Baroness Masham's concerns and added: "There are times when the demand for beds at the NSIC exceeds the number of beds we have available, which is inevitable when we serve a population of around 14m people across the south of England."

A Wexham Park Hospital spokeswoman said it had been "seriously misrepresented" in the Lords and "the outcome would have been the same if Baroness Darcy had gone to Stoke Mandeville, or any other hospital".

She added: "Although we are not a national spinal unit, Baroness Darcy's care at Wexham Park Hospital was exemplary, and we are fully equipped to care for the condition with which she presented. There was no clinical need to transfer her to the National Spinal Injury Centre at Stoke Mandeville."

A Department of Health spokesman said the government supported Wexham Park’s view.

He said the National Service Framework for Long-term Conditions, which included people with brain and spinal injuries, was published in 2005 and set out a ten-year implementation period to improve treatment, care and support.

He said: "The pace of change will be determined by local needs and priorities. I know that good progress has been made, and many areas of the country are providing better services for people with long-term neurological conditions."


Source: http://www.disabilit...peer2019s-death

[ems]

I really do wonder how many of *us* die going into quote general unquote hospitals. There was a card issued by SIA a few years ago to put in your purse saying that you are spinally injured and will need M/E of bowels etc.... ,cos one guy died after something routine.. but the general hosp in question said it wasn't in his care plan to his bowels, it went something like that, anyone remember that?

Emma.

Edited by ems, 20 March 2008 - 06:50 PM.

[Apparelyzed]

I remember it.

In fact, I posted the card to download and print out here;

http://www.apparelyz...p?showtopic=239

Simon

[ems]

Apparelyzed, on Mar 20 2008, 08:52 PM, said:

I remember it.

In fact, I posted the card to download and print out here;

http://www.apparelyz...p?showtopic=239

Simon

omg! thats it! have to be honest, I looked at the story and totally dismissed it at the time.. but geez.. its shocking isn't it that someone should die because of poor knowledge.

Emma.