Figures reveal 185 killed by hunger in hospital

Apr 9 2009 by Helen Rae, The Journal

URGENT calls for an investigation into care standards were made last night after figures revealed nearly 200 people have died from malnutrition in North East hospitals over a decade.

Data revealed to the Conservatives as part of a Parliamentary answer showed that in the North East 185 people died in hospital from malnutrition and the effects of hunger between 1997 and 2007.

The data, from the UK Statistics Authority, also showed 24 people died in private care homes throughout the region.

Last night, Hexham Conservative MP Peter Atkinson said the statistics were shocking.

He said: “On the face of it these statistics are very alarming and obviously they need looking into.

“People will not understand why those admitted to hospital are being neglected and are able to die from malnutrition.

“You can understand there may be certain medical circumstances when there is a difficult patient to deal with and it is not possible to feed the individual without forcing food down them, but this is another issue.

“We need to look at why people are dying from malnutrition to see if it is a case of neglect. It is obviously very worrying for patients and their families as many are already concerned about going into hospital in case they catch MRSA.”

Prof Aidan Mullen, director of nurses and patient safety at the North East Strategic Health Authority, said: “Any avoidable deaths in hospital is something we would not wish to tolerate.