Bloodied medical equipment ‘left lying around’ Bantry General Hospital

Blood-stained medical equipment used to perform a liver biopsy was left lying around in a manner that posed a risk of spreading disease at Bantry General Hospital, according to the health watchdog.

During an unannounced visit to the West Cork hospital in April, an inspector from the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) spotted the equipment “in a dish on top of the bedpan washer” in a utility room.

“The equipment was unclean and visibly stained with blood which posed a risk of the spread of transmissible disease and was not managed in accordance with evidence-based practice,” the inspector wrote in her report.

The matter was of such “significant concern” that it was brought to the attention there and then of the ward manager, who addressed it immediately. The hospital manager was also informed.

Other shortcomings highlighted in the Hiqa inspection report of the hospital’s 33-bed medical ward included:

- A bedpan filled with water was seen in the sink used for cleaning patient equipment.

- Brown staining was seen underneath the seat of two commodes. It was explained to the inspector that commodes are cleaned after each patient, however the inspector found two “visibly unclean”.

- Utility room doors were open “running the risk of unauthorised access” to drawers containing needles, syringes and an unlocked cupboard containing intravenous medications.

- Just 40% of consultants had attended hand hygiene training in the past two years, the poorest participation rate among all staff in the hospital (93% of nurses had attended training).

While Hiqa found the ward was “generally clean,” it recommended that processes around maintenance and management of patient equipment be reviewed “to ensure that the risk of transmission of healthcare associated infections to patients, staff and visitors is minimised.”

Hiqa also said it was essential that a culture of hand hygiene practice “is embedded in every service at all levels.”