THE recent, tragic events at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital and the Princess Royal Maternity Hospital have rightly focused attention on the quality and safety of care provided at these hospitals and across Scotland more widely.
My heart goes out to the families affected by these events and, although infections of this kind are thankfully rare, I know that will not help ease the pain of those who have lost loved ones.
My primary concern, and that of everyone who works in our NHS, is and remains the safety and well-being of each and every person cared for by the NHS in Scotland.
Following the infections at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, I met with senior clinical staff and members of the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde board, to seek assurance that the hospital is safe and that they are taking every necessary step to respond to this incident.
I have also asked the Healthcare Environment Inspectorate to provide additional assurance using their specialist expertise.
The Queen Elizabeth is a major asset in our health service and the staff provide excellent, high-quality and safe health care every day.
But I know there have been concerns expressed that need to be taken seriously.
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So, in addition, I have ordered a wider, independent review to look at the design, construction, commissioning, handover and ongoing maintenance of the QEUH and how that contributes to effective infection prevention and control.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has asked Health Protection Scotland to support its investigation into the incident in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Princess Royal Maternity following the death of two very premature babies.
This work is an immediate and urgent response to the events of recent weeks. But it takes place against a background of continuous and sustained improvement in the quality and safety of patient care, driven by the energy and commitment of our hard-working NHS staff.
During these difficult times it is important we remember the dedication of our NHS, its sheer scale and the number of people it cares for each and every day.
The NHS is the most remarkable institution in the country. Every day thousands of NHS staff are providing high-quality care, free at the point of need, for people the length and breadth of Scotland.
As patients, we can expect to receive safe, effective and compassionate care, every single time.
On the rare occasions where things go wrong, or care falls below the standards we expect, I am determined that we thoroughly investigate and learn from these incidents, to avoid the same thing happening again.
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Here in Scotland, our relentless focus on reducing healthcare-associated infections has seen an 88% fall in cases of C difficile infection and a 93% fall in levels of MRSA since 2007.
Our world-leading Scottish Patient Safety Programme has contributed to significant and sustained improvement in a range of areas, including reductions in sepsis mortality rates – down by 21% since 2012 – and cardiac arrest in hospital, which has reduced by 27% in 15 hospitals since 2013.
Launched just over 10 years ago, the Scottish Patient Safety Programme has contributed to a 22.5% reduction in the rate of stillbirths since 2013, and sustained improvements in neonatal mortality since July 2014.
It has expanded from its beginnings in Scotland’s acute hospitals to support safety improvement right across Scotland in primary care, medicines and now social care. It has become a truly national safety movement, which attracts interest from all over the world.
In mental health, the Scottish Patient Safety Programme has reached out to some of the most vulnerable people in our communities, involving patients in hospital settings in developing tools that will ensure, not just that they are safe, but also that they feel safe while they are in the care of our NHS.
Six mental health wards involved in the programme have reduced rates of self-harm by up to 70%, and 14 mental health wards showed a reduction in restraining patients of up to 57% since 2012.
We should not lose sight of the fact that people’s overall satisfaction with NHS services remains at an all-time high.
Feedback from our most recent Scottish Inpatient Experience Survey tells us that 86% of people rated their experience as an inpatient positively in 2018, and 91% rated their experiences of hospital staff as good or excellent.
We are rightly proud of that, but the recent heartbreaking events demonstrate that we must remain vigilant and carry through our determination to continue to enhance our NHS.
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