02.12.10
Patients deserve better out of hours care - RCP president
Sir Richard Thompson, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said today that patients deserve better care in hospitals in the evenings and at weekends. He said that many hospitals did not have enough senior doctors present to care for patients out of hours and at weekends, and that new working patterns would be needed in future.
The RCP is concerned with the mounting evidence of poor care delivered to patients in hospital and has recommended for the first time that any hospital admitting acutely ill patients should have a consultant physician on-site for at least 12 hours per day, seven days a week, who should have no other duties scheduled during this time. All medical wards should have a daily visit from a consultant; in most hospitals this will involve more than one physician.
Sir Richard said: ‘Despite major improvements in the care of acutely ill patients which were led by the RCP following our major report in 2007, patients are still not getting the care they deserve at night and at weekends. Too many junior doctors are covering too many very ill patients, and this has to change. Our evidence shows that a predominantly consultant-delivered medical service is the best way to improve patient care.’
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