Cameron admits to problems with nursing in hospitals

London: The prime minister has said there is a "real problem" with nursing in UK hospitals, with successive governments lacking the bravery to tackle the issue.

David Cameron said there "was clearly a problem in some hospitals", ahead of a speech in which he will outline plans for members of the public to make inspections of wards and a requirement for nurses to make hourly ward rounds.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Cameron insisted he had "huge respect" for the work nurses did, adding that he had seen at first hand "the very high standards of quality and care that the best nurses provide".

But care was not consistent and the issue had been ignored for too long, he said. "While we know that the vast majority do a brilliant job, there is clearly a problem in some hospitals, in some settings, where we are not getting the standards of care the nation expects.

"I think politicians frankly have done nurses a bit of a disservice by not talking about this. Such is our respect for nursing that we've hidden away concerns about this."

Chilling stories

He said elderly people had told "chilling stories" about the standards of nursing in hospitals, and that ward rounds to ensure patients were comfortable and letting members of the public inspect wards would help tackle the problem.

"You've seen the Care Quality Commission report [which expressed concern about dignity and respect in hospitals]. I've seen constituency correspondence with some chilling stories about how elderly relatives have been treated, so it's time to speak up about this issue, and absolutely key is to act on this issue."

Asked if he was guilty as he had accused his predecessor Gordon Brown of chasing headlines, Cameron said: "This is not a gimmick. This is a real problem in our country. It's the prime minister's job to speak up on issues people care about, and to point to areas where we've got brilliant practice in our NHS but we could do better."

Cameron was due to make a speech unveiling the full package of measures later yesterday. He was expected to pledge to strip away "stifling bureaucracy" and allow nurses to focus on what they do best, saying that the whole approach to caring needed to be reset. He was also to emphasise the need for leadership on wards, saying people want to see a figure of authority, whether they were called matron, ward sister or team leader.

In October the Care Quality Commission found a fifth of NHS hospitals were breaking the law on care of the elderly. Its study also found half of hospitals were failing to provide all-round good nutrition to elderly patients while 40 per cent do not offer dignified care.

Of 100 hospitals investigated in England, 49 were found to generate minor, moderate or major concerns about nutritional standards.