15 July 2023 , 07:32
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There are growing calls to fix and repair the NHS’ crumbling hospitals as shocking new cases emerge.
Health chiefs and the government are accused of losing grip on the state of the nation’s hospitals.
This was recently highlighted as shocking new information emerged on the damage leaks, power cuts and maintenance issues are doing to the buildings.
First revealed by the Mirror, a number of major hospitals are built using reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) - a building material with a set life span, one long passed.
This was followed by a recent ITV report that showed the dire state of NHS hospitals.
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It found that almost half of hospitals were forced to close wards due to floods, power cuts and maintenance issues.
A number of hospitals have suffered from serious flooding issues that has led to entire wards being shut (ITV News)
Maintenance issues led to patients being diverted to other hospitals (ITV News)This included A&E departments, maternity wards and paediatric units.
Labour Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting blasted the Conservatives not fixing hospital roofs whilst the sun was shining, leaving them struggling through a Covid pandemic and cost of living crisis.
He told the Mirror: "After 13 years of Conservative neglect, the NHS is crumbling. The Conservatives literally didn’t fix the roof when the sun was shining, and now the safety of patients is put at risk and hospital wards have closed.
"Even in Boris Johnson ’s backyard, four years into a Conservative government, patients and staff are still forced to make do with the appalling Hillingdon hospital building.
There are growing calls to repair the NHS crumbling hospitals (ITV News)"Where the Conservatives failed patients in Hillingdon, Labour will deliver a new hospital by the end of our first term.
"Only Labour can rescue the NHS from this crisis and renew the service to make it fit for the future."
Meanwhile patient groups also blasted health chiefs for lack of action, jeopardising the safety of those in for much needed care.
The Mirror previously revealed that over 30 NHS buildings were “ticking time bombs” that could “collapse without warning”.
NHS hospitals have had to turn to thousands of metal props to keep their buildings safe due to a concrete compared to 'chocolate aero'The concrete RAAC is an air-bubble filled substance with a lifespan before its integrity comes into question as it's slowly worn down by leaks, the environment and time.
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Data obtained by a freedom of information request revealed the extent of a scandal that has plagued the country’s health service, getting progressively worse for years.
Thirty-four NHS buildings were among public buildings constructed in England with RAAC between the 1960s and the 1990s - a special type of concrete that contains air bubbles.
The material was used in hospitals and schools, as well as commercial buildings, because it offered a cheap, lightweight, fireproof and thermally efficient alternative to normal concrete.
One issue with RAAC is when moisture penetrates the concrete thanks to its structure which can rust metal supports inside, weakening it (Alan Johnston partnership)However, RAAC has a fixed lifespan of around 30 years, after which its integrity comes into question - an issue which has been known about since the 1990s.
The situation has become so bad that one hospital was forced to deploy over 3,000 steel props to keep its roof up in 56 areas and an NHS chief compared the material to “chocolate Aero”.
Meanwhile, ITV said that 27 NHS trusts reported 171 maintenance incidents over the last three years, showing how widespread the issues were.
St George’s Hospital, in south London suffered such bad flooding in its maternity ward in 2020 that women in labour had to be diverted by ambulance to other hospitals to give birth.
Two years later, the paediatric ward was similarly flooded.
Dozens of NHS hospitals have suffered from incidents like floods and power cuts (ITV News)In January 2022, West Midlands Hospital suffered a power loss that forced its A&E department to shut, along with several operating theatres.
Cambridge’s Papworth Hospital suffered such bad electrical issues in February last year that a critical incident was declared and patients had to be diverted from the hospital.
Altogether, the repeated floods and maintenance issues, combined with crumbling concrete paints a dire picture on the state of the country’s hospitals.
It raises serious further questions about its future.
The Liberal Democrats echoed calls to repair leaking roofs.
Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said: "It is a national scandal that patients are being treated in hospital buildings with dangerous roofs at risk of collapse, leaks in wards and power cuts. This is a disaster waiting for happen.
"This Conservative government has neglected our health services for years and is failing to deliver on the new hospitals we were promised by 2030. Now the NHS is facing budget cuts because ministers are refusing to stump up the extra cash needed to fund pay rises for our nurses, doctors and other staff.
"The Conservative must come clean about the impact of these cuts for crumbling hospitals that are already in a shocking state of disrepair."
National Voices Chief Executive, Jacob Lant blasted the constant raiding of NHS budgets and said that chiefs had long run out of road.
They added: “It’s a well known fact that NHS capital budgets have long been raided to prop up frontline care. But it’s clear we’ve run out of road on this approach. Poor maintenance leads to wards having to close, putting more pressure on beds and ultimately meaning the NHS can’t care for as many patients as it needs to. We also know it can be demoralising for staff forced to care for patients in substandard surroundings.
"As part of the NHS at 75 celebrations, National Voices was commissioned by the NHS Assembly to engage with our membership and people with lived experience. One aspect of our findings was that people understand the NHS is under pressure but they do want honest answers on how long they may wait for care - part of this transparency must also include telling people when they can expect their local hospital buildings to be repaired."
Rachel Power, Chief Executive of the Patients Association, a leading patient group, said: "All patients deserve to be treated in a safe and well maintained environment, which will aid their recovery. The warnings of trusts bosses that deteriorating NHS buildings risk patient safety and quality of care should be taken seriously and acted on."
Professor Tim Orchard, chief executive of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, said: “Due to the age of our estate at St Mary’s Hospital, much of which pre-dates the NHS, we have to spend a significant amount of our resources on urgent maintenance work.
“This allows us to continue to provide safe and high quality care for patients. But it comes at a cost, particularly in terms of the £7m we spend annually on repairs and the effort and time staff have to spend finding workarounds to our estate problems. It makes everything a lot harder.
“Three of our hospitals, including St Mary’s, are included in the new hospital programme, though the Government’s recent announcement included news that funding for our schemes has been pushed back beyond the original commitment of 2030. This is clearly disappointing but we are continuing to work to achieve the majority of our redevelopment, especially at St Mary's, as near to the original timescale as possible.”