Ward ventilation system at QEUH ‘broke health and safety law’
THE VENTILATION system at a £842million super hospital broke health and safety law by failing to protect patients from harmful bugs, it has emerged.
The Health and Safety Executive have issued NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde with an improvement notice over ventilation in the Queen Elizabeth University hospital, following the death of a 10-year-old boy who contracted Cryptococcus from bird droppings.
Their investigation began following the outbreak, which saw another woman become infected with the fungus and later die – although the fungus was not a contributing factor in her death.
Now watchdogs have written to NHSGGC chief executive Jane Grant over their findings, saying they identified “contraventions of health and safety law in relation to the standards of ventilation in some wards”.
The body also said they have served an improvement notice relating to ventilation in one ward used to treat kidney transplant patients and cancer patients.
The notice states: “You have failed to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that the ventilation system within ward 4C is suitable and sufficient to ensure that high risk patients who are vulnerable to infection are protected from exposure to potentially harmful airborne microbiological organisms.”
An HSE spokesman told the Herald said: “We have written to Greater Glasgow Health Board’s chief executive after identifying contraventions of health and safety law in relation to the standards of ventilation in some wards.
“We have also served an Improvement Notice requiring Greater Glasgow Health Board to assess and review the standard of ventilation in one ward in particular and prepare a plan for any upgrades required.
“We note that hospital management are currently taking active steps to address these issues. While our investigation is ongoing, we will remain in regular contact with the Board.”
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde confirmed the improvement notice was issued on Christmas eve, and said that the healthboard had been working with HSE “on areas highlighted in the March 2019 Healthcare Improvement Scotland Report.”
A spokeswoman said that patients in ward 4C, which is subject to the improvement notice do not “require specialist ventilation” and added: “Any ‘at risk’ haemato-oncology patients are cared for in Ward 4B which is a fully HEPA-filtered ward.”
“We have also confirmed with other UK centres who care for renal transplant patients they similarly treat these patients in a general ward environment.
“As an additional precaution, however, to further safeguard our patients, we installed mobile HEPA filters in Ward 4C in January 2019 as part of our control measures when we were investigating infections at that time.
“Under Scottish health technical memoranda, general wards do not require to undergo the critical system verification that has been required in the Ward 4C Improvement Notice.
“In view of this, and the additional safeguards that we have already implemented, we have asked for an early meeting with HSE to discuss the content of the Improvement Notice in more detail.
“This meeting will take place in the first week in January.”
Jane Grant, Chief Executive, said: “We are sorry for the distress that patients and their families have experienced by the current issues and want to assure them and the public that we are working with the Scottish Government to do everything necessary to remedy the situation.
“I also want to thank our staff for the commitment and professionalism they have demonstrated throughout this time, ensuring that our patients continue to receive the safe, high quality healthcare they deserve.”