DEATH rates are down at the George Eliot Hospital with the situation to be continually monitored.
Latest figures for the Nuneaton NHS Trust reveal the number of patients passing away has reduced from 122.7 in September to 106.9 in October.
The figures are arrived at through a complicated system called the Summary Hospital-level Mortality Indicator. Although still high, director of nursing Dawn Wardell said the reduction was `positive’ news.
“Mortality figures are still high, but I am pleased to say the figures for October are down from 120 plus to 106.9,” said Mrs Wardell speaking at the latest public meeting of the Trust Board.
Medical director Andy Arnold added: “It’s still higher that it should be but lower than it has been.
“We are carrying out an intensive review of patients who do die.”
As reported in the Nuneaton News, the hospital implemented a radical shake-up after being named and shamed as having the worst death rate in the country back in November of last year.
Following the release of a damning Dr Foster report, the Trust announced that every single death would be thoroughly investigated by a clinical team.
The team, which includes Mr Arnold, looks at three aspects, quality of care, the way the hospital records the death and external factors such as whether a patient is admitted late.
Speaking back in November, chief executive Kevin McGee said that the Trust was committed to addressing the issues and being open about it.
“We are taking the issue of this comparatively high mortality rating extremely seriously and have instructed external experts to undertake a robust review of our mortality data and internal processes to enable us to fully understand what is causing the George Eliot to record a consistently high rate,” he said.
“We are committed to being totally transparent about this issue and we expect the review to provide a reliable conclusion as to what we need to change to ensure our rating improves in line with other hospitals.”
