The
parliamentary watchdog has accused NHS staff of covering up mistakes and
failing to report bad treatment suffered by patients.
A
report by the National Audit Office states that staff are too scared to report
mistakes because they fear they will be disciplined by the trust if they
highlight any problems with patient care.
As
a result, a culture of covering up has developed in across hospitals in the
NHS, it reports.
The
Audit Office highlights the actions of two NHS trusts where managers have
encouraged staff to report incidents and offered guidance on how to prevent
errors happening again.
After
changing procedures, Barts and the London NHS trust increased the reporting of
clinical errors by 40 per cent, while staff at Greater Manchester Ambulance
Trust said it was now happier to admit mistakes.
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