Concerns over patient safety at the Conquest

The respected Dr Foster organisation has published its annual report, 'How Safe is Your Hospital?, which gives every NHS hospital trust a patient safety score out of 100.

East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust scored just 43.15, ranking it 84th out of the country's 126 trusts.

The overall death rate, the death rate for emergency admissions and the death rate for people admitted who had suffered a heart attack were all higher than the national average.

Only 53 per cent of suspected stroke victims received a CT scan within 24 hours of admission and the number of 'foreign bodies' left in patients after surgery was one of the highest in the country.

The report said this might indicate a level of openness '“ which is to be applauded '“ and the trust performed well with broken hip patients, hysterectomy operations, reducing the risk of so-called superbugs and gall bladder surgery.

Margaret Williams, who represents patients on the Conquest Hospital board, said: "The problem with these reports is that they are always a bit behind the times.

"There is work to be done but they are a dedicated lot and it is an improving picture up there so I would be very interested to see next year's report '“ it takes time to see these changes.

"I think there is a culture of openness there and they tend to own up to things which might have stayed hidden in the past which can only be a good thing," she added.

A spokesman for East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust welcomed the report and echoed Mrs Williams' sentiments.

He said: "We use this data along with a wealth of other robust clinical indicators to ensure we are continually improving the safety and quality of care for our patients. We are confident that our standards of care and treatment compare well with other local hospitals.

"We have complied with and met the Care Quality Commission core standards for better health for 2008-09. We are committed to continued quality improvements and will be building upon our successes as we plan our priorities for the coming year.

"There are already plans in place to ensure good quality and high standards of care for patients. This plan looks at a broad number of issues, including mortality rates, infection control and CT scans.

"We are confident we will continue to show improvement, which is linked with a review we have done on how data is collected and analysed."

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