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Lansley condemns blight of mixed-sex wards

Friday, January 9 2009

A hospital bed ward

New figures reveal that Labour have not honoured their pledge to abolish mixed-sex wards in the NHS.

In April, the Labour Health Secretary, Alan Johnson, claimed the Government was within 'touching distance' of abolishing mixed-sex accommodation. But information from hospitals reveals that this is far from the reality.

 

  • Patients are still being treated on mixed-sex wards with little or no segregation - 15 per cent of hospital trusts still use mixed-sex nightingale-style wards
  • Patients are not being given segregated bathroom facilities - 28 per cent of hospital trusts and 29 per cent of mental health trusts do not provide segregated washing facilities for all patients  
  • There were more than 6,000 reports of patients being inappropriately accommodated

Andrew Lansley, the Shadow Health Secretary, stressed that patients should not have to suffer the indignity of being placed in accommodation that affords them too little privacy at such a sensitive time. 

"Despite hearing Labour Ministers make promise after to promise to end the scandal of mixed-sex wards, we have not seen the necessary action and they continue to blight our hospitals.  It has been a long list of promises made and broken."

Andrew promised that a Conservative Government would double the number of single rooms in NHS hospitals in order to end the scandal of mixed-sex wards and ensure patients are treated with the respect and dignity they deserve.

Andrew Lansley CBE MP

Andrew is Shadow Secretary of State for Health, and is well respected across healthcare for his extensive knowledge of the NHS and health services.

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