Concerns have been raised after it emerged 93 patients died in one health authority area while waiting to be discharged from hospital.

New figures showed the NHS Fife patients died last year despite being passed as ready to leave.

Labour health spokesman Dr Richard Simpson, who obtained the details under freedom of information legislation, said: “I am gravely concerned by these figures. It is scandalous that 93 people who had been passed fit for discharge died before they were able to leave hospital. NHS Fife and Fife Council need to explain what has happened.

“When patients are kept in hospital after they are ready to leave they are exposed to the risk of infection, but I would never have imagined that so many people would pass away while waiting for an appropriate care package.

“The key to ending delayed discharges is better joint working between services which, at the moment, have different priorities and are allowing elderly patients to fall between the cracks.”

The figures showed that 70 patients died in 2009 and 56 died in 2008 while waiting to be discharged.

Labour said there is a “long-running” problem in Fife with delayed discharges, also known as bed blocking.

In a statement, NHS Fife said: “Fife Council and NHS Fife are committed to ensuring that no-one stays in hospital for longer than is clinically necessary.

“It is regretted that individuals have died while their individual long-term care plans were still being finalised.

“The figures reported under the FOI relate to the period up to the October census and reflect the increasing age and frailty of those people with whom NHS Fife and Fife Council staff are working to find solutions that allow them to leave hospital.”

About £500,000 is being spent until April to address delayed discharges.

Councillor Peter Grant, leader of Fife Council, and Professor Jim McGoldrick, chairman of NHS Fife, are meeting weekly to receive up-to-date reports detailing what is being done to bring numbers down.

The statement continued: “At the first of the weekly meetings it was confirmed that funding issues had been resolved for those over six weeks and that numbers waiting for nursing and residential homes will go down as a result.

“Numbers waiting for home care was also seen to be reducing.”

 

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