A man died at the Bristol Royal Infirmary last week after staff shortages allegedly forced the closure of a specialist hospital ward.
Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting told the House of Commons today (Tuesday, January 18) that a man died after his condition deteriorated as a result of delays in care.
He told MPs that the man was finally admitted to hospital in Bristol after “desperate chasing by his family and NHS staff”.
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He said the man was suffering with kidney cancer that had spread to his lymph nodes and lungs, and sadly died last Friday.
He said: “Last week his wife contacted me in desperation because he had been unable to access treatment to clear a blockage in his lungs, because the thoracic ward at a nearby hospital had closed because of staffing shortages.
“After frantically, desperate chasing by his family and NHS staff, he was finally admitted to the Bristol Royal Infirmary last week, but unfortunately his condition had deteriorated so he couldn’t receive treatment.”
Mr Streeting did not confirm which hospital was affected by the ward closure, nor if it was in Bristol.
Bristol Live has contacted the hospital trust that runs the BRI, and Wes Streeting's office, for further information.
It comes as the NHS says it is facing significant pressures as the number of people in our city’s hospitals has risen again.
Last week it emerged that a four-star hotel in Bristol city centre is being used as a temporary care facility to free-up beds at the BRI and Southmead.
The new facility is designed to treat patients who are medically well enough to leave hospital but require additional care before they can return home.
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