NHS 'cover-up culture' exposed: Ombudsman warns scandal-stricken hospitals are ... trends now
Hospitals are concealing evidence when patients are harmed, claims the outgoing NHS ombudsman.
Rob Behrens said ministers, NHS bosses and board members are not doing enough to end the health service's 'cover-up culture'.
He accused the NHS of, on occasions, acting in a 'dreadful' way to prevent bereaved families from finding out the truth, and claimed some parts of the £160billion-a-year service still put 'reputation management' first.
During investigations, Mr Behrens had stumbled across 'the disappearance of crucial documents after patients have died'.
Latest figures suggest there are around 11,000 avoidable deaths per year in the NHS due to patient safety failings.
Rob Behrens (pictured) said ministers, NHS bosses and board members are not doing enough to end the health service's 'cover-up culture'. He accused the NHS of, on occasions, acting in a 'dreadful' way to prevent bereaved families from finding out the truth, and claimed some parts of the £160billion-a-year service still put 'reputation management' first
During investigations, Mr Behrens had stumbled across 'the disappearance of crucial documents after patients have died'. Latest figures suggest there are around 11,000 avoidable deaths per year in the NHS due to patient safety failings
Mr Behrens, who will soon step down as ombudsman for England after seven years in the post, told the Guardian: 'NHS leaders, including ministers, set the tone for the whole organisation.
'Time and again we hear that patient safety is a priority but actions too often suggest otherwise.
'We need to see urgent significant, joined-up intervention to accelerate improvements in culture and leadership, not just in trusts or primary care, but also in NHS England and government.
'Culture is determined not only from the core of an organisation but also from its top leadership.'
While the NHS was staffed by 'brilliant people' working under intense pressures, Mr Behrens said that to often his investigations into patients' complaints had revealed cover-ups.
These have included, 'the altering of care plans and the disappearance of crucial documents after patients have died and robust denial in the face of documentary evidence', he said.
Mr Behrens also singled out avoidable deaths as being too common, particularly in maternity care, mental health and the treatment of sepsis — the body's life-threatening response to an infection.
He warned that the NHS's legal 'duty of candour' was not requiring hospitals to be open about failures and urged ministers to reform how the NHS deals with complaints and regulatory checks and balances.
It comes just months after a scathing report by the ombudsman last year
