NHS Fails To Spot Deadly Blood Clots
Doctors failing to spot deadly blood clots in hospital patients have cost the NHS more than £112 million over the past five years.
Data released by the NHS Litigation Authority revealed that since 2005, over £112 million has been paid to patients and families as compensation for medical staff failing to prevent blood clots.
Guidelines published early last year say every patient admitted to hospital should undergo a blood clot risk assessment, with preventative treatment to be given if necessary. These latest figures suggest, however, that these potentially lifesaving measures are being neglected by hospital staff.
It is estimated that blood clots, known in medical terms as 'venous thromboembolism' (VTE), kill 25,000 hospital patients every year. If the mandatory screening of every patient was carried out, and the appropriate preventative treatment given, then many of these deaths could be avoided.
The charity Lifeblood has emphasised their concern over these recent revelations. Research undertaken by the charity shows that of the 159 Hospital Trusts in England, only 30 are meeting NHS targets to risk assess 90% of patients. That means 4.5 million patients a year are admitted to hospital without receiving the necessary checks.
It calculates that if doctors continue to neglect hospital guidelines, by 2015 VTE-related legal claims could cost the NHS in excess of £250 million.
Lifeblood's medical director Professor Beverley Hunt, said: "The NHS has some excellent new thrombosis prevention guidelines in place but if hospitals don't take urgent action to meet these mandatory prevention goals, then patients will increasingly turn to the courts for compensation."
Commenting on the data, NHS medical director Sir Bruce Keogh said: "We are committed to doing something about this issue, to reduce the suffering of thousands of people and to save many lives.
"This is not complicated. I expect organisations to assess every patient for their individual risk of getting a blood clot. Not only would this more than pay for itself, it is clearly the right thing to do."
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