November 22, 2022

Evidence Of Medication Mix-up Found In Priory Hospital Inspection

According to the CQC, concerns raised previously at Priory Hospital East Midlands had not been fully addressed even as the hospital continues to be rated inadequate and in special measures following the visit in August.

Inspectors at a mental health hospital have said that Nurses gave medication to a patient by injection when it was intended to be given orally.

A spokesman for the Priory Group said they have put in place an action plan to address the issues raised.

The inspection which was carried out unannounced came after concerns about the safety and quality of the service had been raised by the CQC.

The report said; "We were notified of three recent medicines errors, which involved nurses administering intramuscular injections to a patient. This medicine had not been prescribed by a doctor. Staff had reported numerous medicines errors. A visiting community pharmacist had identified recent medicines errors."

Due to a lack of oversight around medicines management, medicines errors had not always been identified- the report noted.

The report also added that Doctors had not always ensured medicine charts were clear and concise and that increased the risk of medication errors.

Inspectors noted that apart from the medication issues, there were concerns about the restraint of people using the service.

Priory Hospital East Midlands is a specialist hospital in Annesley, overseen by Partnerships in Care Limited and offers specialised assessment and treatment to assist patients returning into the community or other accommodation.

The Health Watchdog has said that it served Partnerships in Care Limited a warning notice to ensure they made swift improvements around its medicine management, so people did not come to harm.

A spokesman for the hospital said; "A detailed action plan is in place, implemented by a new hospital manager working with a multi-disciplinary team, who are ensuring all necessary improvements are made. Care plans are audited regularly and we have made robust improvements to our medicine’s management processes, including around the planned introduction of electronic prescribing and ensuring that all lessons are learned across the hospital.

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He also added that the verbal discussions they already had with the CQC confirm that positive changes have taken place. According to him, their management systems in the hospital have been reviewed even as they had started working closely with external agencies to ensure improvements are demonstrable and sustained

While the NHS is known globally to deliver quality healthcare services, there have been increasing cases of medical negligence and one of this is medication errors.

Medication errors can cause the patient unnecessary pain and suffering, harm, complications or even lead to death. Therefore, if you or your loved one has suffered from such medical negligence while at the NHS, you can reach out to our medical negligence solicitors via our helplines to discuss your situation and subsequently make medication error claims. Alternatively, you can fill out our online free claims assessment form.

After a successful claim, you will be deservedly compensated for the harm suffered. Our consultation sessions are free while we also handle our medical negligence NHS claims on a no win no fee basis.

It is your legal right to make claims and with our no win no fee policy, you do not have anything to worry about in terms of legal fees. We also want to inform you that there is a limited time to make claims.